Caught in the middle of the paths
by CatMuto
Summary: Lloyd was forced into Cruxis by his father, Kratos. Now, he has the secret from his friends and is torn between the ways he should go. Which one will lead him into the better future? KraLloyd-Fluff - he finally got caught!
1. Prolouge

**Cat-Alin: **Hell and welcome to my new story ..**  
Shihna: **You don't have a title yet?**  
Cat-Alin: **I do, too! I just .. ok, I don't have one. This story just popped into my head this morning.**  
Shihna: **I thought you had migraine.**  
Cat-Alin: **I do! Now say the disclaimer Shihna - I'm making you my muse - and shut up.**  
Shihna: **FINE! Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco. If she did, Kratos would've stayed in the party all the time.**  
Cat-Alin: **You only have him like 10 hours if you follow the storyline straight through!

_Haima:_

The wind blew sharply over the barren land, but the mercenary on the edge of the cliff didn't mind. He didn't feel it at all. He just stared out into the distance, following his thoughts.

"Kratos?"

The mercenary flinched over the oh-so-familiar voice and turned. A young boy, still a teenager in the later teenyears, was looking at him a bit worried. The boy was dressed in a red jacket, followed with darkblue pants and horrible brown suspenders, his hair standing up straight, before it fell over his right eye a bit. Kratos knew him. Far longer than the two had been on the journey, which had taken a few weeks now.

"You okay?" the boy asked, stepping closer.  
"Why do you ask, Lloyd? Everything is just fine." the mercenary answered, leaning against the banister and crossing his arms over his chest.  
"Well .. it's just .." Lloyd said, rubbing his neck, searching for words. "I mean, I just saw you there, you know, standing at the edge and just staring outwards .. you looked sort of .. sad."  
The mercenary shifted his weight onto his other knee and just looked intently at the boy.

He knew the boy longer than since the beginning of the journey. When Kratos had first found out that this boy .. had Kratos' wife's grave at his house, Kratos had realized that that boy was .. in fact .. his son. Kratos still had some trouble realizing that, but the longer he thought about it, the prouder he got, when he saw Lloyd fighting the monsters .. the way Lloyd was teasing Genius, a half-elf friend - although he claimed he was a full elf .. or the way Lloyd seemed so thoughtless sometimes, yet so idealistic. Kratos had started to believe that he had, indeed, found his little boy Lloyd again, with whom he had spent the happy years, together with his wife, Anna.

"Kratos?" Lloyd asked again and caught Kratos' thoughts ouf of his mind.  
"It's nothing." Kratos said and turned again. "You seemed depressed though. You should be happy. Your long journey has finally ended."  
Lloyd joined him on the banister, leaning on it with his arms.  
"It's not what I hoped for." Lloyd said, sulking. "I wanted an end, where everything was fine .. no more people having died because of the Desians, Collet still having all her senses, not to mention her voice."  
Kratos looked over at the boy. He was still shocked about how the Chosen, Collet Brunel, a close friend of Lloyd's, had lost her sense of tasting, sleeping and feeling over the journey. But most of all, he had been stunned by the fact, that the Chosen couldn't talk anymore.  
"One never gets what one desires." Kratos said, uncrossing his arms. He then put his hand on Lloyd's head and ruffled his hair a bit. A gesture Kratos had done a lot when Lloyd had been a small boy. "Don't worry. I believe the Chosen will get her senses and voice back, when she has fulfilled her destiny as the Chosen to regenerate the world of Sylvarant."

That was actually a lie Kratos was telling the boy, but he couldn't tell him the truth. How the Chosen has lost her senses and her voice to become a perfect marionette, the perfect vessel for a girl older than the Chosen was herself, the girl having been dead for a few millenia.

"Kratos ..?"  
"What is it?" Kratos asked.  
"Could you take your hand off, please?" Lloyd said.  
Kratos flinched and quickly took his hand, which had been lying on the boy's head for a while, away. "I'm sorry."  
"Hey, no problem." Lloyd grinned.

The grin reminded Kratos of his dear wife, Anna. She used to grin the same way. The same broad, heartily way. She used to be such a happy women, never put down by her grieve past in the Human Ranch.

"Say, Lloyd."  
The teenager stopped in his tracks, about to leave. He turned back to the older one.  
"Hm?"  
"You said in the end you wanted nobody to die.." Kratos hesitated for a moment. Then he smirked. "You don't feel bad about killing Kvar, are you?"  
Lloyd looked stunned, then grinned embaressed.  
"No, not at all!" Lloyd rubbed the side of his nose. "I mean, he's responisble for killing my mom, so I don't mind him being dead. He deserved it .. slimy bastard."  
"Watch your language, Lloyd." Kratos burst out suddenly.  
Lloyd grinned even more, stretched himself.  
"I'm gonna lie down."

Kratos should really watch out. Or else Lloyd would figure out by the sound of Kratos' voice and his behavior towards Lloyd would figure out that Kratos was his father. But then again, according to Refill's moaning over Lloyd's bad grades and wisdomless, Kratos shouldn't worry much.

"KRATOS, WATCH OUT!!"  
Kratos unsheathed his sword with a sudden movement and slashed the masked person next to him.  
"Argh!"  
"Wait!!" Kratos yelled, but the Masked One already teleported away.  
The steps hurried towards Kratos and Lloyd looked at him worried.  
"Kratos, you okay?"  
"Thank you, Lloyd." Kratos said, sheathing his sword again.  
"No problem!" he grinned. "You know who that was?"  
"No." Kratos smirked. "But he'll remember me. He has that wound I inflicted on him."  
Lloyd looked a bit surprised.  
"Lloyd." Kratos said and looked with his usual serious gaze at Lloyd. "Do not die."  
"Whaaat?" Lloyd cocked his head to the side. "Whatever. I won't die."  
Kratos smirked a little and went back into the inn.

Kratos meant it seriously, when he warned Lloyd. The truth coming towards them in the Tower of Salvation would not only crush his soul, but if his hotheadedness would get the better of him, Lloyd would most likely fight somebody he wasn't strong enough for yet .. like Kratos himself ..

_Tower of Salvation:_

Kratos stood over the whole scenery, watching how Lloyd and the others were beating Remiel, who had told them the truth about the Worldregeneration. Lloyd had done incredible progress during the journey. He started to watch his opponent's movements before charging in to attack.

Lloyd looked up to Collet, who was silently floating over them.  
"Collet ..!"  
"Spare your breath." Kratos said, stepping towards them. Everybody stared at him, surprised to see him.  
"Kratos .. where were you?" Lloyd asked, looking at the mercenary confused.  
"The Chosen has lost her soul. It is locked deep in her body and won't return." Kratos said, ignoring the boy's question. "She is a marionette, standing in the path of the portal of death."  
"What!?" Lloyd snapped. "What the hell are you talking about!?"  
Kratos merely shrugged his shoulders. "You wanted it as well, the world's regeneration. If we take the Chosen to Derris Quaran and fuse her with Martel's soul, Martel will be resurrected and the worlds will be saved."  
Lloyd's gaze changed, it smoothened for a moment, then turned into a worried look. Almost as if he didn't believe what he was hearing.  
".. What are you talking about?" Lloyd asked.  
".." Kratos didn't reply, just looked at what was happening.

This was exactely what he had feared all journey long, since Lloyd had joined in. He had tried to avoid this situation, trying to persuade Lloyd to go back to Iselia. Or to his adoptive-father, the dwarf Dirk. Kratos had tried to keep Lloyd away from this place, this situation, this person - himself - so he would never get caught into such a vicious circle of betrayal. Kratos regretted that he hadn't manage to persuade Lloyd to leave. He should've tried harder. Then again, if he was anything at all like his mother, he wouldn't have left. He would've stayed on the side of the Chosen.

"Kratos .. who are you really?" Lloyd asked, his voice shivering with fear. ".. ANSWER!!"  
Kratos sighed and revealed his iceblue wings.  
"I am a member of the worldleading organization: Cruxis." he said, everybody staring at his wings shooting out of his back.  
The boy stared at the wings, then at Kratos. The icecold, blank stare in his brown eyes. Fixed onto Lloyd.  
"This .. can't be .." the boy mumbled so quietly underneath his breath that nobody except him heard it. "You won't get Collet!!"  
Lloyd jumped onto the platform, unsheathing his swords and charging at the mercenary, who parried the first hit with his own sword.

The boy fell onto the knees, the fake mercenary over him, the latter's sword at the boy's throat. Lloyd glared at Kratos, then just fell loosely onto the floor, letting the final strike hit him. Kratos slowly took his sword away and sheathed it. Lloyd opened his eyes again, seeing Kratos' gentle gaze on him and wanted to ask, what he was thinking of doing, when a light came from above. Another angel came, this one with long blonde hair and pink feathers.

Kratos swore underneath his breath. He had hoped he could get them to leave before the leader would come.

The blonde angel stared and Kratos kneeled down.  
"Yggdrasill-sama .." he said.  
The other angel smirked and looked at Lloyd, who had sat up.  
"You are 'Lloyd' .. are you not?" he asked.  
"I don't give my name to the likes of you!" Lloyd hissed, grabbing his swords again.  
Yggdrasill laughed.  
"Neither would I to you." he replied and grabbed a big purple sword, ready to swing it at the teenager and his companions.  
"W-wait!" Kratos suddenly called and Yggdrasill stopped.  
Yggdrasill's eyes went over to his loyal seraphim.  
"What is it, dear Kratos?" he asked.  
"I may not have a right to stop you from your plans, but .." Kratos said, not able to finish it.  
Yggdrasill smirked.  
"Don't worry." he said and swung his sword at the opponents.  
Lloyd was thrown against one of the pillars.  
"Argh!!" Lloyd yelled, spitting the blood out of his mouth and sliding down the pillar onto the floor.  
Kratos gasped, when he saw the pillar starting to crumble, right onto Lloyd.  
"Lloyd!!" he called and was next to the boy in a heartbeat, stopping the pillar with one arm falling onto the boy. "Lloyd .."  
The teenager was unconscious.  
Yggdrasill smirked.  
"I will leave them to you, Kratos." he said and disappeared in the same light he came from.

Kratos stemmed the pillar off of his arm and it crumbled into many heavy pieces.  
The others were watching him - semi conscious - how he got up and picked Lloyd up into his arms.  
"W-wait!" Shihna, the summoner, hissed and stemmed herself up a bit. "What are you thinking of doing!?"  
"Where are you taking Lloyd!?" Refill hissed as well, sounding really pissed off. "How dare you try to kidnap one of our-"  
"You don't understand!!" Kratos yelled at them.  
Both the girls flinched, staring at the mercenary, who held Lloyd in his arms closer to himself, as if he was searching for a long lost closeness.  
"You don't understand .." the mercenary muttered again and turned towards the altar.  
"W-w-wait!" Genius called, struggling to get up, grabbing his kendama. "A .. Ai .."  
"Lie back down .. you're badly hurt .." Kratos muttered, his back to the group.  
"_Aishikaru _.." A pitiful little ice piece appeared behind Kratos, who had already reached the altar, Genius cursing to himself before falling to the ground again.  
Quick and heavy steps came towards them and Kratos half turned towards the group again.  
"You are saved .." he said.  
His gaze met the one of the leader of the group, Botta, one last time. It was a sad, but happy look. And Kratos teleported away with the unconscious boy in his arms.

**Cat-Alin:** Yes, I had the idea for this story in the morning with migraine and lack of sleep.  
**Shihna: **Well, you shouldn't stay up that much talking with 'Mikey'.**  
Cat-Alin: **Shut up! We can't see each other before easter! We have to talk!**  
Shihna: **You're tired and sick, go back to bed. Reviews, please?


	2. Telling the Truth

**Cat-Alin: **Welcome to the second chapter!**  
Shihna: **You sure have no life, if you write stories most of the time.**  
Cat-Alin: **.. that's also the reason why my Mom won't let me see Mikey for his birthday!**  
Shihna: **Don't snap at me for your lack of tolerance towards humans.**  
Cat-Alin: **Well, they're slow and illogical.**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco. If she did, Lloyd would've had a black-belt instead of brown suspenders. Yes, "Aishikaru" is the pronounciation of "Icicle" in japanese. Cat-Alin forgot to say that.

Kratos was greeted with salaams and bobs and curtsies when he got to Derris Quaran. They were surprised and stared when they saw the teenager in his arms.  
"Kratos-dono." the angel at the door to his own private quarters greeted him. The guard-angel's eyes grew wide when he saw the boy in his master's arms. He first thought that the boy was dead, since the clothes was a bit cut open, his face was bloody and dirty. "Kratos-dono, w-"  
"I do not wish to be disturbed, until I call for somebody. Leave." Kratos growled. The angel bowed and left, while Kratos entered the room.

The room was held in a scheme of blue-gold. There was a group of big comfortable looking chairs covered in a pattern of gold and blue, while the bed on the far side of the room was completely held in a darkblue color that looked almost black. On a wooden table next to the head of the bed was a little pictureframe, the picture itself turned towards the bed.

Kratos layed the unconscious boy onto the big sofa, a pillow underneath Lloyd's neck and waited. He hoped that Yggdrasill hadn't done any deadly harm to the boy. The seraphim sat down on the edge of the sofa, looking at Lloyd and running a hand through the boy's hair, like he used to do a long, long time ago.

Lloyd flinched and opened his eyes a bit, finding himself in an unknown room. He sat up straight, turned around into a crouching position and grabbed his swords, when he saw the enemy's face above him.  
"What are you doing here!?" Lloyd demanded. "Where am I!?"  
"Calm down, Lloyd." Kratos said, holding his hands up to show his harmfulness. "You should rest some more, you're wounds aren't healed yet."  
Lloyd ignored him and looked around the room, drenched in that gold-blue color. There were no real windows, one side was just made out of pure glass. Lloyd could easily destroy it and escape, the door was closer, but he would have to shove Kratos out of the way.  
Slowly he put one foot on the floor and started backwards.

"Don't escape." Kratos said.  
It didn't sound like an order, it sounded like a good advice.  
"Escape through force, the angels out there will kill you."  
"Angels!?" Lloyd yelled and ran to the big glasspart and flattened his forehead against it, too see outside. Black-purple mist was turning around everywhere, creatures with wings on their backs were hovering underneath them.  
"Dammit, Kratos, where the hell am I!? And why did you bring me here!? Where are the others?! Answer!!" the teenager yelled.  
Kratos got up from the sofa edge and signaled Lloyd to sit back down.  
"Sit. You're still weak." he said.  
Lloyd shook his head violently.  
Kratos merely shrugged his shoulders and went towards the door.  
"Wait here for a minute. I will be right back."

Lloyd examined the door. No matter how close he stepped towards it, it didn't open for him. Touching it, knocking his shoulder against it, kicking it, nothing helped. Kratos hadn't locked the door, Lloyd was certain of that. The teenager let out a frustrated yell and teemed around the room, looking for an escape.  
Chairs in a group, the sofa he had been lying on, shelves full with books that not only looked expensive but also ancient, the bed. Nothing else. Lloyd noticed the pictureframe next to the bed and began to get curious. He stepped towards the bed .. and stopped. He turned back towards the glass part.

He knew that it was none of his buisness what picture Kratos had next to his bed. The picture he saw last before falling asleep for the night and the first thing he saw when he woke up. Lloyd respected the privacy. Even of his enemies.

The door opened again and Kratos entered. He had changed into his other outfit, the white being a contrast to his dark expression. He watched how Lloyd had steamed around before he heard the door opened and stopped, staring at the seraphim.  
"I told you to sit down." Kratos said calmly.  
"I'm too worked up to sit down." Lloyd snapped back.  
"Sit. And I will answer all your questions."  
Lloyd growled and finally sat down onto the sofa, glareing at the seraphim. Kratos handed him a mug with a steaming liquid in it.  
"Drink that. It will calm your nerves." Kratos said and sat down in one of the chairs he pulled over to the sofa.  
Lloyd reluctantly took the mug and stared at the deepred liquid in it.  
"It is not poisoned or anything like that." Kratos endangered him and Lloyd took a small gulp. It was hot, but in a pleasant way and he started to feel calmer. "Now, what are your questions?"

"Where am I?" Lloyd asked looking at the purple mist outside again.  
"Derris Quaran, in the city of angels Welgaia."  
"Why did you bring me here?"  
Kratos sighed.  
"Alas, that would be too complicated to explain. Let us save that question for later."  
Lloyd grumbled and thought.  
"Where are the others?"  
"While you were taken by me to Welgaia, some Renegades came and saved them."  
"Renegades? What are they?"  
"A group that opposes Cruxis and the Desians. Yes, the Desians are the same as Cruxis."  
"They're half-elves, too?" Lloyd asked. He had finished his mug already without noticing. His nerves had calmed down and he started to think a bit clearer.  
"Yes. The Renegades are also mostly half-elves. Although they oppose what Cruxis is doing." Kratos said.  
"You mean using an innocent girl to become the vessel of somebody who has been dead for millenia?" the teenager asked faithlessly.  
".. Not really. You must understand .. that will be complicated to explain .."  
"Tell me. Let's see if I understand it." Lloyd said, put the mug on the little tray and leaned back, crossing his arms.

So, Kratos told him all about the ancient Heroes of the war, that the Hero Mithos was actually a half-elf and the alter ego of Yggdrasill, who attacked him and his companions in the Tower of Salvation. Lloyd was, of course, surprised to hear about that. He was even more surprised to find out that Kratos was one of the Hero Mithos' companions and has lived for over fourthousand years now!

".. and that's why Mithos wants to ressurrect Martel." Kratos finished.  
Lloyd just sat there, staring at the seraphim and nodded slowly. It was indeed rather complicated to understand everything, but it was understandable why Mithos wanted his sister back.  
"Now I want my question from before answered." Lloyd said, leaning towards the seraphim. "Why did you bring me here?"  
Kratos sighed.

How he could tell Lloyd everything while making him understand how much Kratos regretted to have lost him for such a long time. Of course, knowing Lloyd from the journey he would most likely get angry and won't listen to reason.

Kratos wondered and finally got up, stepping towards the bed. Lloyd watched how he picked up the pictureframe and went back to him, handing it to him.  
"Do you faintly remember her?" Kratos asked.  
Lloyd took it and looked intently at the woman on it. She had long chocolatebrown hair, big happy green eyes. She was holding a bouquet of wild growing flowers in her arms, but the faint glitter of an exsphere on her throat.  
".. Not really. She seems familiar, but I can't really place her right now." the boy said, handing it back to the seraphim.  
"That" Kratos said and sat back down on the chair, the pictureframe on the tray next to the empty mug. "is your mother."

Lloyd stared wide-eyed at the seraphim.  
"What .. how come you have a picture of my mother?" he asked breathlessly, afraid of the answer. Kratos didn't answer, his gaze going towards the floor, like he was a bit ashamed of admitting it. "You .. you trying to say .. that _you_ are my father?"  
Kratos sighed and nodded his head.  
"I can't believe that." Lloyd said and got up. "I won't believe it! You killed Mom!"  
Lloyd tried to storm for the door, but Kratos was quicker and grabbed him by the arms, stopping him.  
"Lloyd, please! Wait a minute! Let me explain!" the seraphim asked him, holding the struggling teenager in a tight grip. "Please!"

Lloyd calmed down a bit and sat back down on the sofa, waiting for the explanation.  
"Kvar said that 'my father killed my mother'." Lloyd glared at the seraphim.  
Kratos sighed and nodded.  
"Yes. Your father killed your mother." he said and sat down. ".. I told you about Mithos' .. Yggdrasill's plan to put exspheres and Cruxis Crystals on everyone to make them into lifeless beings, so the discrimination towards half-elves would vanish." Kratos was referring to Martel's wrongly understood last wish for a world 'where there is no discrimination'.  
Lloyd nodded.  
"I opposed that plan and went to Sylvarant .. and I met your mother, Anna." Kratos said, remembering the meeting. "She was one of the experiments from the Angelus Project that Kvar was responisble for. I took her in my care, protecting her from the Desians. Although I told her that she was not safe with me. Yggdrasill kept sending angels after me to persuade me to come back."  
Lloyd nodded again, lying back down flat on the sofa and closing his eyes, listening to the seraphim.

"We travelled around for a long time, never staying in one place longer than a week." Kratos told him and smiling suddenly. "When you were born, we continued our travelling. Noishe was of course always at our side."  
Lloyd turned his head towards the seraphim.  
"Noishe used to belong to you?" he asked.  
Kratos nodded.  
"Yes. He's a protozoan. The first living form, created by the Eternal Tree's mana. His whole life he evolves into a fishcreature, then into a bird, then into his current Terranis-form and in the end he will become a demon-slaying human being." Kratos explained.

".. Cool!" Lloyd grinned and listened again.  
Kratos smirked, but his expression darkened again.  
".. we ran and ended up close to Iselia, finally caught by Kvar." he said, Lloyd flinched when he heard the name. "Anna's exsphere never got a keycrest, so the mana in her body went wild when her exsphere was forcefully removed. And she turned into a monster .."  
"An Exebula .. right?" Lloyd said, startling the seraphim. The boy had sat back up, remembering how he had killed a person as well, turned into an exebula monster.  
Kratos nodded.  
"Anna .. tried to devour you, but Noishe protected you. Anna and Noishe fought each other, both injured during the fight." Kratos said, clenching his fists together. Lloyd started to look pale. "Your mother regained control of her senses .. for a short moment .."  
"Shut up .." Lloyd mumbled.  
"She begged me to kill her .." Kratos continued. "I couldn't, but when she tried to attack you again, I .."  
"Shut up ..!"  
"I .. killed her-"  
"I told you to shut up!" Lloyd yelled, grabbing the seraphim's shoulders. The boy's eyes were teary and he was surprised to see how moist the older's eyes were as well.  
".. Kvar attacked. You, Anna, Noishe and her exsphere fell down the cliff .." Kratos told him. "After I fought Kvar off I followed you, but .. there were only corspes of the Desians, eaten by monsters .."  
Lloyd's grip tightened on the seraphim's shoulder and one of Kratos' tears escaped and trickled down his cheek.  
"I thought you were dead .. I didn't want to believe it and searched but .. I never found you .."  
".. Dad!" Lloyd gulped and flung his arms around the seraphim's neck.  
Kratos returned the hug. Hugging the son he had long lost and finally found again.

**Cat-Alin: **Awww, Oyako(Family)fluff at the end ..**  
Shihna: **Lie down your head feels like ten inches thick, right?**  
Cat-Alin: **So? I'm not gonna miss Mikey, tonight! I'll just have a bath and relax.**  
Shihna: **And yet you wonder why your mother is so angry at you for not taking care of yourself when you're sick.**  
Cat-Alin: **.. Reviews, please? And I use the japanese names, because I'm addicted to the japanese Version!


	3. Joining Up with the Chosen

**Cat-Alin: **Welcome to the third chapter.**  
Shihna: **Yes, welcome.**  
Cat-Alin: **Of course there are going to be Plot Twists, just WAIT for them!**  
Shihna: **Don't snap at the readers!**  
Cat-Alin: **Hey, I've still got the migraine AND I'm on PMS, so WATCH OUT!**  
Shihna: **_Safureki_! Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco. If she did, Yuan would've joined you in the end.

(_The endsuffix "-sama" and "-dono" both mean Master/Lord. If you read manga like Angel Sanctuary by Kaori Yuki, you would hear them used a lot. "-dono" is the old version of "-sama" and still is very respectful meant. And the authoress kept writing "seraphim" since she saw in other stories that it was used for singular. There would've been complains, if she had written 'yondai tenshi' "Nee-san" is, of course, the japanese saying of big sister. I can also use "Aneki" .. which I will maybe use ..)_

The seraph and his son stayed in that embrace for a while, happy to have finally found each other. Lloyd finally let go and stared at his father confused.  
"You took me out of the Tower of Salvation, to bring me here." he said and his father nodded his head. ".. Then why didn't you give me over to the Renegades, when you saw that we were going to be saved?"  
Kratos didn't answer and got up, walking towards the glass.  
"The truth is, Lloyd .." he said and sighed. "I took you here, so we wouldn't be seperated anymore."  
Lloyd looked at the older one.  
"I don't understand .. why .." he said, searching for the right words.

The teenager didn't want to leave his father either, who he had just found again. So he understood why his father took him with. Though, why did he take him with to a place, where Lloyd was actually seen as an enemy? He wanted to stop the Worldregeneration .. or, at least, Martel's ressurrection by sacrificing Collet.

The door opened and the white figure of Yggdrasill entered.  
Lloyd growled, clenching his fists. Kratos gave a bow and muttered 'Yggdrasill-sama'.  
Yggdrasill's eyes lay on Lloyd for a while and he smirked.  
"You brought him with you .." he said.  
"Yes .. I didn't want to leave him anymore." Kratos confessed. "I hope this is alright with you."  
"Of course." Yggdrasill said, running a hand through his long hair. "It is no problem whatsoever. He may even be useful."  
"I don't think I will help you in any way, Yggy." Lloyd growled.  
Yggdrasill turned quicky and shot a magic at Lloyd, that hit him on his already bloody cheek.  
"Yggdrasill-sama!" Kratos said, shocked.  
"I apologize for that." Yggdrasill grinned and turned to Kratos, then back to Lloyd. "Hm .. yes, I think I know the perfect job for him."  
Kratos was sure what the leader of the angels was thinking.  
"Yggdrasill-sama, before you spring the job on him, let me talk to him." Kratos said. "Maybe, if he hears the reason behind the job, he will be willing to help."

Lloyd stared between his father and the leader back and forth. He wondered what job they were talking about. He hated to be used by the angel, but he wanted to help his father. Although that would mean that he was also helping Yggdrasill.

"Very well." Yggdrasill said and turned to leave. "Explain to him what we need him for. He will most likely agree, if you tell him, considering your relationship. If he does, make him an angel." and the leader left.  
"Angel!?" Lloyd yelled, getting up. "I will not become an angel!!"  
"Lloyd, calm down." Kratos told his son and the boy growled before sitting down again.  
"What job was he talking about? And why should I become an angel!?" the boy asked, crossing his arms again.  
"Lloyd .. I actually took you here to be with you. I don't want to leave you again." Kratos said and looked uncomfortable to say the real reason. "And that would mean, that you would have to become an angel of Cruxis."  
"WHAT!?"  
"Listen." the seraph stopped the teenager. "If you don't become an angel, the others outside will torture you or kill you. It mostly ends with the second one."  
Lloyd shifted uncomfortable. Dying didn't sound like a very nice idea to him.  
Kratos sat back down on the chair and looked at his son.  
"What Yggdrasill wants you to do as your job is .. to bring the Chosen here."  
"What?" Lloyd snapped at him and started to steam around the room again. "No way! I will NOT bring Collet to this .. this .. place, just so you can use her body for Martel! How did you ever think I was going to do that!?"

Kratos sighed. He knew that his son would react like that. Collet and Lloyd had been friends since their days as young children. Of course he would never lead her towards her death. But Kratos wondered, how he could ask his son to cooperate. He didn't want to lose him in any way.

"You're right. You would never do that." Kratos admitted and sighed again.  
"Damn straight I won't!"  
".. will you at least become an angel?" the seraph asked. "So that you can walk around Welgaia, without getting your head choppeded off the minute you're outside."  
Lloyd was silent.

Of course he didn't want to become an angel, sleepless, appetiteless and without feeling. Especially he didn't want to lose his voice .. but maybe not all angels lost their voices. His father and Yggdrasill could talk and they were angels.  
On the other hand, Lloyd wanted to leave as soon as possible, taking his father with as well, but then again, he would be killed if he stepped out of this sanctuary like walls.

"I promise you, I can make the angeltransformation go through without any pain." Kratos calmed the younger on down. He stepped towards him and put a hand on his shoulder.  
".. Do I have to become an angel?" Lloyd asked, avoiding to look at his father.  
"Yes .. unless you want to be imprisoned in this room until you die natuarlly."  
Lloyd sighed, that was even more horrible than getting his head chopped off.  
".. Very well. I will become an angel." he said finally.  
Kratos smirked.  
"Then, you will have to take off your keycrest off of your exsphere." he said.  
Lloyd instinctively put a hand over his exsphere and Kratos chuckled at the horrified look on his face.  
"Don't worry. You can keep your mother's exsphere on. You only have to remove the keycrest." he said.  
Lloyd grumbled something and took his keycrest off. He felt a stabbing pain where his exsphere was burning on his flesh.  
Kratos had gotten hold of an angel and ordered him to get something. The angel had quickly returned and left on Kratos' notice.  
Kratos held the golden shape up. It looked a bit like the one Collet had over her Cruxis Crystal, it was just smaller.  
"This is a special keycrest replica." he said. "It will quickly turn your exsphere into a Cruxis Crystal. Thus, you will beginn your transformation into an angel. It will take a while, but - as I said - for you it will be absolutely painless."  
Lloyd nodded and watched how his father attached the golden keycrest over his exsphere. The teenager flinched.  
"But that hurt." he said in a playful pissed-off voice.  
Kratos smirked.  
"Yes, that little pain had to happen. But that's the only one." he calmed him down.

An angel entered and bowed respectfully towards Kratos.  
"Kratos-dono, Yggdrasill-sama has summoned you." he said in a whispy voice. Kratos nodded.  
"I'll be right there." he said and turned to his son. "Wait here, it won't take long."  
Lloyd nodded and watched his father leave with the angel.

Yggdrasill was staring at a big flowerlike object with a woman in it, when Kratos entered the chamber.  
".. And? Does your son agree?" he asked.  
Kratos, who had bowed down to one knee after he entered, hesitated for a moment.  
"He agreed to become an angel, but he has refused the job to escort the Chosen here." he confessed.  
".. I see. I must admit," Yggdrasill said and turned towards Kratos, his arms crossed. "I would've been surprised if he had agreed. But it is no problem."  
"It is not?"  
"No. We will give him a different assignment." the leader of the angels said and smirked at the woman with the long green hair in the seed. "I think he will be most happy to take over this one .."

Kratos smirked when he saw how Lloyd was sitting on the floor, arms crossed behind his head and yawned. The boy's head snapped back and his eyes open, when his father entered.  
"What did Yggdrasill want to see you about?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.  
"See, if you had agreed to bring the Chosen here."  
"I will NO-"  
"Calm down." Kratos warned him. "He knew you wouldn't. Thus, he gives you a different assignment."  
"Which is ..?"  
Kratos knelt down to him and smirked.  
"He wants you to follow the Chosen and her group. Attach yourself back to them and report to us what is happening." he said.  
Lloyd grumbled and thought about it for a while.  
".. Very well. I will do it. But that means I do not have to bring Collet here, to Welgaia or to Yggdrasill, right?" he asked. "I can just follow her? You know, sort of watch over her like .."  
".. A guardian angel?" Kratos asked, knowing what a pun that would be.  
".. Yeah."  
"Yes. You will travel along with her again. See, what she is doing. If there is anything strange about her." the seraph said and Lloyd nodded.  
"Shall I start immediately?"  
"No, you should rest for today. Your wounds will heal over night. Thanks to the evolving Cruxis Crystal." Kratos said.

Lloyd opened his eyes and couldn't figure out for a minute where he was. He could see purple mist swirling around outside and the interior of the room he was in was in gold-blue colors. He sighed and sat up, holding his head.  
He remembered. Kratos had taken him to Welgaia, the city on Derris Quaran, and he was becoming an angel now .. and Kratos was his father.

The door opened and Kratos came in, a little package of clothes underneath his arm.  
"Morning, Lloyd." he said, noticing that the boy was awake.  
"Morning, Dad .." the boy muttered and yawned.  
Kratos smirked a bit and handed the boy the clothes. They looked identical to his own clothes.  
"Here, better change your tattered clothes. Meet me outside when you're ready." he said and left again. Lloyd cocked his head to the side and changed his cut up clothes for the fresh one.  
He looked at the door and wondered if it would open for him. It didn't yesterday.

It did.  
"Boo!" Lloyd grinned at Kratos when he saw him and put his swordbelts around his hip.  
".. such a child." Kratos smirked and ruffled Lloyd's hair a bit.  
"Hey, what's up with that door? It didn't open yesterday." the teenager said, pointing at the door he just came through.  
"Oh, that. The doors only open for angels, that's why it didn't open for you yesterday. Your mana is already changing a bit into an angelic one, so the door recognized you as an angel. And opened." Kratos explained.  
"Hmm .."  
"Anyway." Kratos went with Lloyd to a teleporter. "This teleporter brings you to the fronts of the empirial city of Tethe'alla, Meltokyo. We found out that the Chosen's group is there right now. So, you should be able to catch up with them."  
"I'm only there to watch over Collet, right?" Lloyd asked doubtful when he stepped on the teleporter.  
"Yes, of course. Here." Kratos said and gave Lloyd something that resembled a wristwatch. "Wear that. It's a communicator. You can give me or Yggdrasill messages with it and you can reveice them from us."  
Lloyd nodded and attached it to his left wrist, hiding it underneath his red gloves. Kratos gave Lloyd a small wave before the teenager disappeared and was gone.

"Woooow .." Lloyd was stunned when he saw the big city in front of him. The houses were white with ornaments carved into them in gold and there were a lot more people in the city then Lloyd had even seen in Palmacosta, Sylvarant's biggest city.  
He walked absentlyminded through the city, noticing a few murmurs from afar.  
"Hey, isn't that .."  
"Can't be .."  
"But he looks identical ..!"  
"Lloyd!!" somebody called and Lloyd got hit in the stomach violently.  
"Umpf! Who the-!?" he wondered and looked down onto a silver haired youth. "Genius!"  
"Hey, you ARE Lloyd! Nee-san! Nee-san, it's really Lloyd!" the youth called and waved to somebody from behind.  
A group of four came towards them, a young woman with the same silver hair as Genius, a girl with blond hair and dark eyes, a younger girl with shocking pink hair and a guy with long red curly hair.  
"Lloyd, good to see your well." the woman with silver hair, Refill, said.  
"Uh, yeah." the teenager said, rubbing his neck.  
"Gorgeous, who is that?" the guy with the redhair asked.  
"That is Lloyd. He was taken by an enemy of ours." Refill said. "Lloyd, this is Tethe'alla's Chosen One-"  
"Hey there, you, **I** am the great and handsome and super-important Chosen Zelos J. Wilder! But, you can call me Zelos-kun." Zelos said, smirking.  
"Hey .." Lloyd said and his eyes fell on Collet.

Her eyes were halfclosed and looked completely black and she didn't give any reaction to anything.

Refill quickly informed Lloyd that they were heading for a city, Sybak, that should help them with getting Collet's soul back. The younger girl, who's emotionless expression resembled Collet's, was Presea.  
"Say, Lloyd, after Kratos took you away, what happened?" Genius asked.  
Lloyd flinched and looked around nervously.

_"Lloyd."  
The teenager looked at the older one.  
"The others will most likely ask you what happened." Kratos said and Lloyd shrugged his shoulders.  
"Hey, I may not be a straight-A Student, but I DO know that I will do best not to tell them the truth." Lloyd said.  
"I know you won't. But if they don't have an explanation, they will pester you." Kratos said. "So, you can tell them that you escaped heroically or whatever your heart desires to."  
Lloyd nodded._

"O-oh, well, Kratos took me to this .. um .. city on Derris Quaran." Lloyd said, sticking to the truth a bit. "And then, this blond angel tried to tie me up to this big wheel with needles on it and had wanted to whip me, but I was, like, 'Nuh-Uh' and slashed my way through until I got to a teleporter. I used it and was here on Tethe'alla."  
"Wow .." Genius muttered.  
Lloyd went on ahead, towards a long and big bridge. A tiny peeping sound came from his wrist.  
The teenager flinched and quickly shoved his glove off, looking at the communicator. A message from Kratos: '_Nice Story._'  
Lloyd blushed and muttered a "Are you watching me or what?", the words quickly appeared on the display and got replaced by another message from Kratos: '_Of Course._' Lloyd grumbled embaressed.

"Alright, you people from the old, crumbling world. THIS is the grand Tethe'alla Bridge. It's steered by over three-thousand exspheres!" Zelos smirked proudly.  
"Three-thousand .." Genius muttered.  
Lloyd's hand clenched over his exsphere. It was burning underneath the keycrest replica.  
"Why you all looking like you just got hit by a stone?" Zelos asked innocently.  
"Maybe we should tell you .." Refill muttered and told him how the exspheres were created.  
Zelos looked disgusted.  
"That's one nasty bed-time story you just told me. You joking?"  
"You think we would joke about something like that!?" Genius snapped at the male Chosen.  
".. Well, whatever." Zelos grinned. "Being unhappy about it won't bring the dead back. Come on, let's go!"  
Zelos went ahead, Lloyd was lagging behind everybody.

He kept thinking about how his mother had sacrificed her life to keep him alive. And how his father had had to kill her. She and Kratos had tried to run away from Cruxis .. and now both, Kratos and his son Lloyd, were angels from Cruxis.

"Lloyd! Come on!" Genius called and Lloyd caught up with them quickly.  
At Sybak, they talked with a professor, who told them about the parasite-like behavior from the exspheres and Cruxis Crystal, eating from the host's soul until they were fully under their control. Lloyd looked worried, not only about himself but also for Collet.  
" .. So that means, if Collet's crystal would get a keycrest, it would be alright?" Refill asked.  
The professor nodded.  
"Yes. The keycrest sublines the parasital behavior and the soul stays intact."  
"Well, then we'll just search for a keycrest and Lloyd will make it, right?" Genius asked happily. Lloyd shot out of his thoughts.  
"Huh?"  
"Lloyd .. pay attention .." Refill sighed. "If Collet gets a keycrest, she'll get her soul back. And you're the only one that can carve the charm.  
"Y-yeah, but I can't work the ore .." Lloyd mumbled.  
"Then we'll search for an old keycrest and you'll just renew the charm." Refill said and they went ahead, Lloyd staying behind.

Making a keycrest for Collet ..  
Lloyd wanted to help Collet of course. He had known her since he had come to live with his adoptive-dwarf-father, Dirk, and he wanted to rescue her soul. But then, he didn't want to find out what Yggdrasill would do to him or his father - who had sent him to the Chosen - if Lloyd helped Collet getting her soul back and therefore become useless for Cruxis-

_Pi-peep_!  
Lloyd flinched and looked again at the communicator.

Kratos: '_Stop worrying, Lloyd. Make the keycrest. Yggdrasill-sama agrees. Make a keycrest for the Chosen. It will do no harm._'

Lloyd didn't know if he should be happy to hear that the keycrest would have no effect on Collet, even if it was attached. He quickly caught up with the others, who had been looking at a bazaar for the keycrest. They found one, but the seller didn't want to part of it except for ten-thousand gald.  
"Alright, enough of your buisness here, buddy." Zelos growled. "I want to know who gave you permission to sell all this stuff, STAT."  
"Hmpf .. and who are you to ask that?" the seller replied.  
"How dare you not recognize the Chosen of Mana!"  
"T-T-Th-The Chosen!?" he stuttered. "I .. I .. I apologize! Here, take the keycrest. Free of charge, of course!"  
The keycrest was very old and the carved charm wasn't noticiable at all.  
"Thank you, Zelos." Genius muttered. He was grateful of course, but not that happy that it was towards Zelos.  
"Hey, I only did it for the cute Angel, the dear Collet." Zelos smirked and asked at the research institute for a room in which Lloyd could carve the charm.

".. This should work .." Lloyd muttered and got up, the keycrest in his hands. "Although it will show no effect .."  
And indeed, when Lloyd put the keycrest gravely onto Collet's crystal, she was still emotionless and stood there like a perfect statue.  
"No offense, Lloyd, but I don't think your arts are evolved enough for that .." Genius muttered.  
"Maybe we should ask a dwarf to do it." Refill said.  
"But the only dwarf we know is Pop .." Lloyd muttered, staring at the wall. "And he's in Sylvarant."  
"Then we will have to go there-"  
"Hey, hey!" Zelos butted in. "I'm not allowed to let you leave Tethe'alla, remember?"  
"Well, then follow us." Refill said calmly. "You want to help 'dear Collet'. Do you not?"  
Zelos mumbled something.  
"Oh, alright, I'll follow you."  
Some guards popped up and - upon realization that Refill and Genius were half-elves - took Zelos, Lloyd, Collet and Presea down into a cellar, before taking Refill and Genius away first.

Lloyd cursed underneath his breath. He should've done something! Fight the guards maybe. He was surely strong enough for it. Even heavily-armored guards like them had a weakness somewhere. But he was too drowned out by knowing that the keycrest wouldn't help at all, that he just watched.

Their chains were bitten through by a small animal and Shihna, the summoner, appeared.  
"I will not let you leave." a half-elf researcher said.  
"We're saving our half-elf friends. You won't do anything against it, will you?" Zelos asked and grinned.  
The researcher, Kate, showed them a secret passage and they left quickly for the bridge, where their friends were.

They almost reached them, when-  
"They're putting the bridge up!" Shihna cursed. "Come on, we'll jump!"  
"What!? Shihna-honey, we're going to die! No one of us can jump that far, except for Collet, since she has wings!" Zelos said.  
"So? We have to save them somehow." Lloyd suddenly said and they all stormed forwards, jumping and .. fell in the middle of the gap.

_I'm falling ..  
__  
I'm falling and I will die ..  
__  
I can't die yet ..!_

_I need something to stop my fall!!_

While Lloyd was thinking that, he seemed to fall slower and his back started to burn and stab, as if something wanted to get out. He knew what he had to do so that he would survive ..

"_Undine_! Help us!"  
A shot of mana sprayed up from the water and engulfed them, floating them down to the other side.  
"W-we're saved .." Shihna sighed, Collet flying down to them.  
"Excuse me." Presea said. "We need to save Refill-san and Genius-san."  
They ran forwards and saved their friends.  
"I'm sorry that we didn't tell you that we're half-el-"  
"So?" Lloyd suddenly asked. "It doesn't matter. You're still you."  
Genius and Refill were moved and joined the group again.  
"How are we going to go back to Sylvarant, though?" Genius asked.  
"Use the rheairds. We get them and then go to Volt's temple, so Shihna-chan can form a pact and they'll work." Zelos said and Shihna looked uncomfortable when Volt's name was mentioned.  
"And how are you going to carry them?" Lloyd asked. "Those things don't sound like little birds to me." His father had told him what rheairds are, but Lloyd had just managed to save himself, since he hadn't used one to get to Tethe'alla.

They went all the way back to the top of the Fooji Mountain.  
"Those are Rheiards .." Lloyd muttered. ".. How are we going to carry them?"  
"I'll show you." Zelos said and they followed him, getting trapped into a cage, except Collet. She was still outside.  
"You fell for it." A man with a long blue ponytail appeared and frowned, when he saw Lloyd. "You're Lloyd .."  
"So?" Lloyd snapped at him.  
".. Perfect! Now that we have you, we don't care for the Chosen at all anymore! We'll just take you and the rest can run along. We take you, Lloyd Irving, and our plan is going to work!"  
"What the hell are you talking about!?" Lloyd yelled and a woman appeared. "I won't come along with somebody like you!"  
"Very well .." the man said, who Refill had named in her mutter as 'Yuan'. He stepped towards Collet and smirked.  
"What-"  
"If you refuse to come freely, I'll hurt the Chosen and therefore force you to come!" Yuan said and grabbed Collet's wrist.  
She gasped and glared at Yuan.  
"Let go!" she screamed and slashed her Chakram with her free arm towards Yuan.  
Yuan dodged.  
"How ..?" He saw the keycrest over the crystal. "A mere keycrest ..? It would _never_ be able to subdue a Cruxis Crystal!"  
"Nice going, Lloyd!" Zelos complimented the teenager.

The teenager just stared at the Chosen. He had managed to give her her soul back. With a keycrest he had made. Although, the keycrest was not supposed to work. What would happen now to him or his father? Even if Yggdrasill had told him to make one?

Collet tripped when she wanted to help the others and gave a machine on the floor a big crack.  
"Oh no ..! It's broken .. I'm so sorry!" she gasped. The cage around the others disappeared.  
"I just got some very painful memories back .." Shihna muttered, remembering a fall she got because of Collet and her being a klutz.  
Lloyd smirked and grabbed his swords.  
"You want to take me with? Well, take me by force then." he said, starting to unsheath his swords.  
Yuan noticed the strange shaped keycrest on the teenager's exsphere and cursed.  
".. I'll get you next time!" he hissed unfolded some wings and flew off.  
"He's an ANGEL!?" Shihna asked shocked. Lloyd stared after Yuan.

He had wings, too. That meant that he was of Cruxis as well. But why would he be so keen on taking him? Lloyd was angel of Cruxis as well, so why ..?

"Lloyd! Thank you so much for the keycrest!" Collet chirped at him.  
"Huh? Uh .. no problem." Lloyd said, rubbing his neck.  
"They took the rheairds .. what now?" Refill asked.  
"We have to bring Presea to that Kate, don't we?" Zelos asked. "How about we look for a way to get over the sea to sybak? The bridge is still up."  
"The elemental institute should know a way." Shihna said. "They're in Meltokyo."  
"But we're not allowed in anymore .." Genius threw in.  
"Leave it to me!" Zelos grinned. "I know ways to get into Meltokyo, your eyes are going to bulge out!"

Night was about to fall when they got to the base of the Fooji Mountains and built up camp for the night.  
Genius was cooking and looked at Collet.  
"Collet, you can taste again, right?" he asked and Collet nodded. "Got a special request for supper?"  
"Umm .. I don't know. Whatever you'll make, I'll eat it." she said and giggled. "Unless it has green peppers in it."  
Genius begann to cook and Lloyd was lost in his thoughts again.

The Chosen .. Collet had her soul back. And she had all her senses back, although she also still had her angel wings and senses as well .. He wished for a message from his father or Yggdrasill, so he would know what would happen now.

_P-peep! P-peep! P-peep!_

Refill frowned and Lloyd flinched, a hand over his wrist.  
"Excuse me for a second ..!" he stuttered, jumped up and ran a few miles away, behind a big boulder. A message from his father.

'_Stay where you are right now. I'm coming!_'

Lloyd gulped nervously. That didn't sound that good ..

**Cat-Alin: **Eh? Enough Plot-Twist, ey?**  
Shihna: **Calm down.**  
Cat-Alin: **Actually, this story is a go as you write, so just be surprised.**  
Shihna: **Mhm .. Reviews, please, dear readers?


	4. Getting the EC

**Cat-Alin: **Oh my Martel ..**  
Shihna: **What now? Mikey being more perverted than ever now?**  
Cat-Alin: **No .. freakyanimegal456 is reading this story!**  
Shihna: **Who?**  
Cat-Alin: **_freakyanimegal456_! THE writer of I Wish!, Plot Twist, The D word, Parental Power, Phantom Problem, Another Aurion, ToS Bloopers, On Santa's Lap, Role Reversal ..!! Ahhhhhhhhh! I'm going into my complete-fangirl-mode!

Lloyd looked around nervously. If Kratos would appear now the others could see him. And that would bring Lloyd into some tough questioning. He could feel Refill's frowning gaze on his back, although he was about two miles away.

"Lloyd."  
"WAH!!" Lloyd flinched seeing his father so close before him. "W-w-when did you come here!?"  
"Just now. You should pay attention." Kratos said.  
".. How can I not spaze out, if I'm worried about Yggy blowing my ass up or not!?"  
"Language, Lloyd." Kratos growled.  
Lloyd cleared his throat.  
".. Is he?"  
"What?"  
"Is Yggdrasill going to .. do something bad to me because the Chosen has her soul back?" Lloyd corrected himself.  
Kratos shook his head.  
"No. Of course, we were very surprised when we found out that the Chosen's soul has returned, even though the keycrest shouldn't have worked." he said and smirked in a way at Lloyd, that he didn't quite understand what he meant.  
".. Is that why you came? To tell me I'm not in trouble. And neither are you?"  
Kratos shook his head again.  
"No, that's not the reason." Kratos said. "You felt a surge on your back, didn't you?"  
"W-what?"  
"When you fell. You felt a surge on your back." Kratos stated.  
Lloyd looked nervously behind himself. The fire of the group was still in sight, but it was small.

The teenager nodded.  
"Yeah .. I just had this thought that I was going to die from this fall and I needed to do something to stop the fall .." he admitted. "And I felt this hump on my back-"  
"Those were your wings."  
".. my .. my WHAT!?" Lloyd yelled and quickly covered his mouth.

He hoped nobody heared him. But he just couldn't belive it. Him? Having wings? He got this sudden mental image of himself with the exact same pair of wings as Collet had.

"Lloyd, don't worry too much." Kratos calmed him down. "You haven't sprouted your wings yet. That is good, but also bad."  
".. How so?"  
"The good part is, that everybody still thinks that you are not undergoing the angeltransformation." Kratos said. "The bad part is, that your wings could sprout fully at any moment."  
".. is there a way I can prevent them from sprouting?"  
"No, they will sprout sometime."  
"I meant, can I prevent it, until it's a good opportunity?" Lloyd corrected himself.  
".. Not really."  
Lloyd swore in such a strong colorful language that he got a hit on the back of his head by his father.  
".. OW! That fucking hurt!"  
He got another hit on the back.  
"OW!! Dammit, why are you hitting me!?"  
"Watch your language and I will not have to repeat that." Kratos said calmly.

"Where you've been, Lloyd?" Collet asked when Lloyd came back, still rubbing the back of his head.  
"Who was that with you?" Refill asked and giving Lloyd a big shock.  
"W-what? Nobody! J-just a monster! It .. it got a hit at my head." he stuttered, laughing embaressed.  
"Oh, you okay?" Collet asked, looking worried.  
"Y-yeah .." Lloyd mumbled and sat back down.

".. The Sewers?" Lloyd asked in disbelief the next morning.  
They got their entrance refused at the maingate of Meltokyo, saying that they were officially seen as Traitors to the king now. Zelos had told them to follow him to his secret entrance.  
"What did you expect?" Zelos asked innocenntly.  
"Nothing spectacular. But the Sewers aren't really a secret way into a city." Lloyd returned.  
They entered and searched their way through the big sewers, finally coming towards the exit. When three people stood in front of them.  
"Finally you're here .." one of them said. "You know, you guys look like a nice bunch of people .. but we got a good offer if we off you."  
Lloyd just stared at them.  
"Beat it." he said.  
"What did ya say!?" another one yelled at the teenager.  
Refill looked confused at her student.

Lloyd didn't know himself what was wrong with him. He would've usually yelled at them and already attacked. But he felt so calm .. like he knew they were no real challenge. He didn't believe that they were one, anyway. But .. somehow .. he felt his blood rushing through his veins, like it was carrying a substance that was changing his character, his whole personality.

"I told you to beat it." Lloyd repeated.  
"Alright, you're going down first!!" the final one yelled and they all charged at the teenager. He just unsheathed his swords, starting his counterattack.  
Abouter five minutes later, all three of the of the opponents were on the floor, Lloyd sheathing his swords again.  
"If you don't listen .." Lloyd sighed in a bored voice and then Zelos pushed him a bit aside and strode towards the three. And got hit in the back by a huge bluehaired guy.  
"OW!" Zelos yelled.  
The man looked at the group.  
"Move and the Chosen dies." he growled. "Got it?"  
"Wow, wow, wow!" Zelos said and struggled to get free. "You think you will get away with this? Hurting and threatening the Chosen!?"  
"Since you plot Tethe'alla's destruction, you are not considered a Chosen anymore." the man growled back.  
"Ooooh .." Zelos mumbled and tried to look over. "Hey, I swear you guys, let me die here and I'll come back as a ghost and steal ALL the girls' underwear!"  
"YOU PERVERT!!" Shihna yelled at him.  
Before she could summon Undine and give his rear a water-based hard wash, Presea jumped forwards and slashed her axe at the man, who dodged just in time.  
He gasped when he saw Presea.  
"You look like .." he muttered and dodged a firespell from Genius. ".. Move it!" he hissed at the three on the floor and they struggled upwards and ran.

"Where is this elemental institute?" Lloyd asked curiously.  
"It's pretty close by. But we should still watch out not to get caught by some guards." Shihna stated and they walked to the institute, where they saw another Ninja, Kuchinawa, a friend of Shihna's.  
"What are you doing here?"  
"Delivery for Mizuho." he answered and disappaered in a smoke-bomb.  
"I really wish I could do that .." Lloyd mumbled.

_P-Peep!_  
Lloyd quickly stopped the sound and peeked underneath his glove.  
Kratos: '_Why? Teleportation is much cooler._'  
Lloyd sighed and they asked the researchers for a way to get to Sybak without having to use the Bridge.  
"An EC!?" Shihna yelled.  
"What's an EC?"  
"EC. Elemental-Cargo." Presea said. "Can take weight of approximately 30 people or 1500 kilogramm. Third fastest vehicle on Tethe'alla. Used mostly for package-deliveries."  
"What!?" Zelos asked raged. "What do we look like!? Package!?"  
"Well, since the bridge is down, that's the only way." one of the researchers said. "For a fair you'd need tickets and you're wanted criminals .. and you have half-elves with you."  
"Again that ..?" Genius asked.  
"That's the way it is in Tethe'alla. We hardly get out, either."

They decided to stay the night at Zelos' big mansion, since the EC would take another day to get.  
Refill was intersted in a picture of a pretty lady with her blond hair put up fancy.  
"Milene Wilder .." she muttered, thinking that it was most likely Zelos' mother.  
Lloyd was standing on the terrace outside and went along his thoughts.  
".. Sensei, have you seen Lloyd?" Collet's voice asked from inside.  
"I think he went outside." Refill answered.  
Lloyd flinched.

He was, of course, happy to see that Collet's soul was back and she was still her typical cheerful self. But right now he had to get his mind clear. Heck, he was usually pretty good at it. But right now, he had to think about .. how he was becoming an angel, how Kratos was his long lost father and Lloyd was actually on the side of the people who were trying to kill Collet's soul.

He jumped up and grabbed the rim of the roof and flung himself on top of it, just when Collet was stepping outside.  
"Lloyd?" she asked and looked around. "You here?"  
Since she couldn't find him, she went back inside, Lloyd looking after her and he sighed.

He lay flat on the roof, arms crossed behind his head and he thought about his angel transformation. He didn't feel any pain from it, like Collet had. But the thought of him getting wings was just plain .. weird! Maybe that's how Collet felt when she got her wings at the Fire Seal. Except that she was in mortal pain afterwards and Lloyd .. didn't feel any different. Except those times when he felt his characteristics changing or he was about to die and needed to save himself with his wings .. he sincerely hoped they wouldn't reveal themselves when everyone was around and saw them. That would bring him into an awkward questioning.

"Lloyd .." ".. Lloyd!"  
The boy felt a hand grabbing his ankle and he jerked up.  
It was dark around him now and Refill was standing on the top of a ladder, shaking his ankle.  
"Finally you're awake!"  
Lloyd yawned and rubbed his eyes.  
"What's wrong, Sensei?" he asked.  
"It's past midnight, you've been out here in the cold for a long time and you should go to bed - a real bed - now, if you want to be rested for tomorrow." she answered and climbed down the ladder.  
Lloyd nodded and jumped down the roof.

Refill brought the ladder away and went into her room while Lloyd still stayed outside.

_P-Peep!_

"Oh, Martel-dammit, what now ..!?" he swore and checked the message board.  
'_Wait a minute_'  
Lloyd sighed and he waited a bit. A slow tap was heard behind him and he turned, seeing Kratos land and putting his crystalblue wings away.  
"What are you here for ..?" Lloyd asked bored, crossing his arms, copying his father.  
"You don't sound very happy." Kratos countered.  
"Well, considering that you never mentioned your relation to me and kidnapped me to finally confess and making me into an angel, which is for the guy who wants to kill my friend from younger days," the boy counted off. "that could make me a bit angry towards you. .. But I'm actually just tired."  
Kratos smirked.  
"Lloyd, I came, to check on you." he said.  
"What? See if I didn't tell the others about the real deal?"  
".. No. I meant about your angeltransformation." the seraph said. "See, how it's going."  
"Um .. I have no idea what's going on. I just feel these rushes of blood in my veins sometimes." Lloyd said. "Or I act completely different than I'd usually do."  
Kratos chuckled.  
"That's not the angeltransformation. That's just you starting to use your head more often and clearly." he said. "But the angeltransformation is going on. You haven't eaten anything since breakfast, right?"  
Lloyd frowned and thought about it.  
"You're right." he remembered. "And I haven't felt hungry at all since then."  
"See?" Kratos said. "But I advise you to eat a little bit. Or else, everybody will grow suspiscious. I mean, they do know your appetite."  
"Thanks .." Lloyd mumbled. "But when Collet was already at the stage of not feeling anything, she told me that she, when she forced herself to eat something, she couldn't keep it down."  
Kratos waved his hand.  
"Don't worry about that. It won't happen with you. It only happens because of the strong restisting against the body towards the food and the pain the Chosen goes through. She'd be the only one with those problems. Others can still eat. Just not that much."  
Lloyd nodded.  
"And one thing .." the boy sighed, taking his glove off and pointing at the communication-device. "Is there a way I can change this thing? It's peeping is a bit noticable. I think Sensei will be suspiscious very soon. Or she is already."  
Kratos smirked a bit and pressed few buttons on the device. The instrumental version of Starry Heavens played.  
".. Better?"  
"... Do I have to answer?" Lloyd asked with a monotone voice.  
Kratos pressed some more buttons. Instrumental version of Soshite Boku Ni Dekiru KOTO.  
".. Daaad?"  
Kratos grinned.  
"Only other thing left is a vibrationalarm for messages. But that's not very adviseable, since during a fight it would stimulate your muscles and you'd let go of your weapon."  
Lloyd grumbled.  
".. As long as nobody notices my getting messages from angels and that I'm working for them, I don't care .." he sighed and Kratos changed the device to vibrationalarm.  
"Goodnight, Lloyd." Kratos said and briefly ruffled Lloyd's hair before revealing his blue wings and flying of.  
"G'night .. Dad .." Lloyd muttered and went into one of the many vacant rooms in Zelos' house.

**Cat-Alin: **And she also wrote Legend of Kratos?, Grandkid, Kharlan Kindergarten and many more stories!**  
Shihna: **Alright, I already understand that you think that freakyanimegal456 is a good writer and you love her stories. But you hardly read some of them.**  
Cat-Alin: **I only refuse to read those where there is definite Colloyd .. except that One Shot I thought was actually a Kranna .. or a Shihlos .. Oh God, I still get disgusted with it ..  
**Shihna:** Hey, your motto is 'Everybody has their tastes'.**  
Cat-Alin: **Well, of course! I never said I'd hate anybody for liking a certain pairing. As long as they don't rub it into my nose ..**  
Shihna: **It's 'up your nose'. Dear readers, some reviews, please?


	5. In the Toize Mine

**Shihna:** WHY are you writing already the other chapter?  
**Cat-Alin: **Um .. cause Nebilim makes me mad?**  
Shihna: **Well, don't try to fight him with Level 65.**  
Cat-Alin: **But I was doing fine with Lloyd, Shihna, Presea and Refill! But then I wasn't quick enough with Refill's Resurrect!!**  
Shihna: **Calm down. And get Flamberge and Vorpal first! You can't even do Tenshou Sougazan/Falcon's Crest.**  
Cat-Alin: **But I would have to wait until I am finished with Quaran Illusion Scenes! I don't have any patience for that!**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco. If she did, Collet would've DIED!

Morning came and they all got together. They were on their way to the elemental institute and Lloyd noticed how Collet kept putting a hand over her shoulder.  
"Your shoulder hurting?" he asked.  
"Huh?" Collet asked and smiled. "No, it's nothing. I think I just slept wrong .. my shoulder feels stiff."  
Lloyd frowned. A bad feeling of foreboding was coursing through his body.

Collet got a little black bag from one of the researchers and looked at it.  
"What is that?" she asked.  
"It's the bag for the EC, D'uh!" the researcher replied.  
"But .. it's tiny! How small is that EC?" she wondered.  
The people from Sylvarant muttered as well with them, except for Lloyd, who looked blankly ahead. He saved himself just in time, by giving out a surprised 'Oh' when they heard that the EC, indeed, fitted into the bag.

Kratos had told him of course a bit about Tethe'alla and it's technology before sending him down. He knew about the rehairds, about the EC and it's workings. He even knew about 'Thor's Hammer' from the ancient War, a.k.a. Mana Cannon.

They went to a pier at the Grand Tethe'alla Bridge and Collet opened the bag and tripped backwards when a huge boat jumped out of it onto the watersurface.  
"Cool!!" Genius cheered. Refill frowned about the sudden appearance of the boat.  
"I have this feeling I've seen that before .." she mumbled.  
"Sensei ..?" Presea asked.  
"Nothing .."  
The climbed in and Shihna summoned Undine, asking for some of her mana to help them move forwards in the EC.

They went towards Sybak after putting the EC back into it's bag.  
Lloyd frowned and recognized the figure standing at the entrance of Sybak, a few yards away.  
"Da-!" he called almost out, and stopped just in time, when he saw the figure flinch and move it's head, sending him a mean glare.  
"Da..?" Refill asked, everybody having heard what Lloyd was about to say.  
"Uh ..um .." Lloyd muttered, thinking of what to say, not admitting the relation to the seraph. "I, I was saying .. Dammit, there's Kratos."  
The others looked ahead and stopped dead when the figure got to them closer and stopped in front of them.  
Kratos looked at each of them and layed his eyes longer on the boy.  
Lloyd knew what he had to do to keep his cover.  
"You again .." he muttered and grabbed his swords. "You want to take Collet, don't you!?"  
The teenager charged at the Seraph, without his swords, and Kratos quickly grabbed his arm and threw him over his shoulder onto the floor. Lloyd bit his teeth together and kept himself from whincing from the pain stabbing his back.  
Kratos turned to the group and stopped in front of Collet.  
"Chosen" he said calmly. "If you wish to live, remove the keycrest from your Cruxis Crystal."  
"No!" Collet hissed and shook her head. "This is the present Lloyd gave me. I'm never taking it off."  
Kratos muttered something about 'foolish feelings' and left, turning one last time to look at Lloyd.  
Lloyd was frowning.

What did Kratos mean with Collet taking the keycrest off? Of course, she had all the needs to be Martel's vessel. Taking the keycrest off, would take her soul away again and she'd be able to take Martel's soul into her body. .. But just .. WHY did he ask for Collet to take her keycrest off, so she could LIVE!? He would have to have a serious talk with Kratos!

They took the secret passage back into the lab where the half-elf-researcher Kate was. She took a good look at Refill and Genius and nodded.  
"Yes, you two are indeed half-elves." she said and nodded her head again.  
"We kept our promise, now keep yours." Shihna said.  
"Alright" Kate said. "I will tell you how to keep Presea from dying through her exsphere-evolution."  
They all listened intently.  
"In order for her to get freed, you should go and see the dwarf Altessta. He put the keycrest and exsphere onto Presea, so he should be able to help her remove it." Kate told them. "He lives beyond the dark forest of Gaoracchia to the east of here."  
They nodded and went back out and headed for the forest.

"Wow, it's so dark here!" Collet cheered.  
"You sound happy about that .." Zelos muttered.  
They wanted to get in deeper, but some guards of the pope stopped and charged at them. They easily defeated them and quickly ran through the forest, making sure that no back up would catch them so soon.  
Zelos scared Lloyd and Genius - although Lloyd didn't reeeeeeally believe it - with a story of a treasurethief who had been killed in this forest.  
Collet stopped when they got to a split-path.  
"What's wrong?" Genius asked.  
"I .. I hear footsteps .." she mumbled and concentrated.  
"I don't hear anything."  
"Collet still has her angelsenses." Refill explained and Collet pointed to the left path.  
"There are definitely footsteps coming closer from there. Sounds like armored people." she said.  
Shihna mumbled.  
"That's bad, that's Altessta's place .. Corrine!" she called and the tiny animal appeared. "Go and see if there are some guards waiting for us, please."  
Corrine nodded and zoomed away.

Instead, a big man with blue hair - the same from the sewers, jumped down from a tree in front of them. Everybody stepped back, looking alarmed.  
"You!!" Genius snapped at him. "You want to finish killing Collet!?"  
"I do not know about the other three" the man said in his deep voice. "But I never intented to take anybody's live. I just wish to speak to that young girl."  
His head nodded towards Presea.  
"With Presea? What for?" Lloyd asked.  
"Your name is Presea?" the man asked, like he was remembering something_(A/N-1)_. ".. You have an exsphere!?"  
He seemed shocked and stepped towards her, but Presea slapped his hand away.

Everybody took that as a sign to attack.

The man fell to the ground, unconscious and defeated.  
"We should take him with us, to get some information out of him." Refill suggested. "Who told him to go after Collet. Maybe he was sent by that Yggdrasill to get his hands on Collet."  
Lloyd flinched.

Was she implying anything? Did she already suspect him of anything? Maybe his sudden appearance, looking unharmed and well, could have looked like he was working with Cruxis already. Or Refill didn't really suspect anybody from the group, but just wanted to know the truth ..

Corrine came back and jumped onto Shihna's shoulder.  
"Shihna, there are soldiers around Altessta's place and they are coming this way! Run!" he warned her and disappeared.  
"Collet's right." Shihna mumbled and bit her thumbnail. "I have no choice. I'll take you to Mizuho."  
"Shiiiinaaaa ..?" Zelos asked and smirked. "Your village is supposed to be this big secret. Bringing a bunch of Non-Mizuho-People there doesn't really help keeping it secret, right?"  
"We have no other choice!" Shihna snapped at him. "We can't go to Altessta, because guards are there and coming our way, we can't go back because there are some guards THERE, too! We have to go to Mizuho .. unless you want to be imprisioned."  
"Stop bickering, you two!" Refill warned them. "Shihna, please show us the way to Mizuho."  
"Alright .. Zelos, carry him!" Shihna ordered the Chosen, who bent down and tried to lift the man.  
"Uuurgh .. you gotta be kidding ..! No way am I able to carry that ogre!" he said and gave up.  
"Oh, I'll help! Zelos, all alone, will be a bit hard for him." Collet offered and knelt down to the man.  
"Aww, Collet-chan, you're so sweet! We Chosens watch out for each other." Zelos said, swooning over Collet's cuteness. Lloyd growled a tiny bit.  
Collet grabbed the man and picked him up with one hand.  
"Oh, he's so light! Don't worry, Zelos, I can carry him on my own."  
".. I see .." Zelos mumbled and looked scared.

When they arrived in Mizuho, Shihna was summoned to the vice-chief. They waited outside and the man came to. He sat up and looked around.  
"You're our prisoner." Refill told him.  
"Don't do anything funny!" Lloyd warned.  
"I like the thought that my intellect keeps me from doing anything 'funny', if I do not understand the situation." the man said and the group was told to come into the vice-chief's house.

"I hear from Shihna that you people from Sylvarant have come here to Tethe'alla, to save the Chosen of Sylvarant's soul." the vice-chief said, who had introduced himself as 'Tiga'. "You have succeeded."  
He nodded towards Collet, who blushed and looked at the floor.  
"What is it that is keeping you here?" Tiga asked.  
".. We heard from the system of the two worlds, vying for the mana." Refill said. "And we want to change it."  
"I see .." Tiga said. "And how are you planning on doing this?"  
Refill didn't answer.  
"We don't have any specific plan right now" Lloyd said. "But that doesn't matter. This system is full of mistakes and we will change it somehow."

He wasn't actually planning on doing that. He wanted to keep his cover, but he had ot admit, that the system of the hourglass-like manaflow between Tethe'alla and Sylvarant was just wrong. And changing it was something that has to be done. Somehow.

Tiga laughed amused.  
"You remind me of the hero Mithos." he said and Lloyd's mouth twitched. "He tried to change the world as well. You people plan to follow Mithos' path?"  
"We don't." Lloyd burst out. "We're not following his path. We just want to change the worlds. With our own strength."  
Tiga laughed even more.  
"Interesting." he said. "Very well. We of Mizuho will do our best to support your doing. But in exchange we want you to help us move to Sylvarant, once you're done."  
Lloyd was stunned and looked at the others.  
"If it helps the People of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla." Collet smiled.  
"I don't care. Just keep Tethe'alla save." Zelos said, shrugging his shoulders.  
Refill thought about it a minute.  
"We need all the help we can get. And helping them afterwards is just fair."  
"Alright." Lloyd said and nodded.  
"Then, Shihna will continue to follow your group." he said and looked at her. "But as a representative of Mizuho, not as a watcher."  
"Y-yes!" Shihna said.  
A ninja entered the room.  
"Excuse me, but I am here to tell you, that the guards have left the Gaoracchia Forest and it's surroundings."

The group left Mizuho and entered the Garoacchia Forest again, just to leave it on the other side, where the guards had been beforehand. They stopped and Lloyd pointed forward, when they saw a tiny little village.  
"What's that?" he asked.  
"Ozette .." Presea mumbled and ran towards the village.  
"Lloyd, we have to follow her!"  
They ran after the girl, who met a weirdlooking man in front of a big wooden house.  
"Friends of yours?" he asked.  
"Porters .."  
"Presea, come on!" Genius urged her. "We have to meet Altessta, to repair your exsphere."  
"I have my job to do .." she mumbled and went inside, while the man left, laughing to himself.  
The others followed Presea quickly into the house and stopped dead, holding their hands over their mouths and noses.  
"Ugh .." Lloyd mumbled and they went into the room where Presea was. She was choping a big piece of wood and kept glancing to the bed in the corner.  
Refill stepped to the bed and backtracked quickly again.  
"I .. I can't believe that .." she mumbled and the others saw the dead and decomposed person in the bed. "It must be from the parasitism of the exsphere .."  
Regal, the man from the sewer who agreed to follow them until he was able to have a long talk with the 'real' Presea, stepped to the girl.

"Presea" he said. "Are you coming with us?"  
Presea shook her head.  
"No. I have my job to do."

They left and found the house of the dwarf Altessta. A girl with green hair greeted them.  
"Uh, we heard there's a dwarf living here, named Altessta." Lloyd said.  
The girl nodded and motioned them to follow her. She brought them to an old man.  
"Who are you?" he asked.  
"We're here as friends of Presea-"  
"LEAVE!!"  
The girl ushered them to the door and Lloyd grumbled.  
"What's up with him?"  
The girl hesitated.  
".. The Master doesn't want to get involved with Presea. He doesn't think it's good for her exsphere to be repaired."  
"WHAT!?" Genius yelled. "And he just wants to let her die!?"  
".. if you indeed wish to help Presea, then" the girl said and lowered her voice. "Look for inhibitor ore."  
"Her keycrest is not from inhibitor ore?" Lloyd asked, who knew a lot about the dwarven arts, since his adoptive-father had taught him a lot.  
The girl nodded and wanted to say something.  
"Tabatha! Send them away!" Altessta's voice yelled.  
"Excuse me .." the girl said and bowed, before she left she muttered. "I will try to persuade him."

Regal told them about a mine around the Ymir Forest and Altamira, where exspheres and inhibitor ore were the mainexports. They left, using the EC to get over the sea. Zelos was steering and Lloyd was sitting on the floor and thought.

He just couldn't understand, why Kratos had told Collet to take off her keycrest, so she would stay alive? Cruxis wanted Collet's body to use it for Martel's soul. Not give up Martel's soul and let Collet live. Unless, Yggdrasill had gotten a swift hit to the back of his head and changed his mind. Or a change of heart, if he had one. A heart.

Upon realizing that the saftey-system at the entrance of the Toize Mine was defect and attacked them, they defeated it and walked through the long paths and turns of the mine to find some inhibitor ore.  
"Hm? What's that door for?" Lloyd asked and they scurried over to it.  
The door was big pale-blue and hat golden carving on it.  
"That door is in no connection with the inhibitor ore which we are searching for." Regal said. "That door leads to the lower levels of the Morlia Gallery."  
Lloyd went ahead and stepped on a switch and a rumble was heard behind him. He gulped and turned around, seeing a huge boulder rolling towards him!  
"Argh!!" he cursed and ran ahead, jumping to a little side track, the boulder rolling past him and onto the floor with a loud bang. "W-w-w-w-w-what was that for!?"  
"I'm sorry." Regal apologized. "I forgot that that trap for intruders was still active. Press the switch on the wall further ahead and it will put the net up."  
Lloyd pushed the switch and hoped that there were no more bad surprises.  
But he got hit by a rotating, floating, twirling little square. He got thrown backwards and landed in front of Refill's feet.  
"And what the heck was that-OW!" Lloyd yelled and held his chest, where he got hit badly.  
"That's a .." Refill mumbled and got hyper. "Bacura from Professor Nepusla!"  
"Oh dear, it's the Refill-Relical-Mode."  
"Yes, it's the Refill-Relical-Mode!" Refill agreed. "Ah, a real, limited edition Bacura, created by the Professor Nepulsa, who had managed to make this little cutie out of manifested Mana!"  
"Cutie?!" Lloyd yelled and jumped up, whincing a bit. "This thing!? This can break our bones in five minutes!"  
"The Bacura is indestructable!" Refill told him off. ".. except if it gets hit by something heavier and more stable than the Bacura itself."  
"The inhibitor ore is just behind the bacura." Regal said randomly, telling them that that was the last hinderance.  
"Martel-dammit! I don't have the nerve to break that thing!" Lloyd cursed and took a long run before jumping over the Bacura.  
He landed safely on the other side.  
"Haha!" he cheered and showed the victorysign.  
Then he noticed, that the Bacura was following him.  
"Run, Lloyd!" Collet called worried, but Lloyd was already running down some stairs, until he tripped ..

and got hit by the Bacura another ten times, before he got thrown back so far by the force, that he knocked against a cluster of boxes.

**Cat-Alin: **Yes, a weird end, I admit.**  
Shihna: **Why do you sound so cheerless? It's Christmas!**  
Cat-Alin: **So? I can't meet my love, I don't have enough presents yet-And don't come with that stuff with 'the thought counts'**  
Shihna: **Because you don't think when you get presents?**  
Cat-Alin: **Exact-HEY!!**  
Shihna: **Reviews please, dear readers?

**A/N1:** In the Drama-CD, Alicia kept bringing Regal a bouquet of flowers for his office each day and they were tiny white ones. When Regal asked her what those flowers are called, Alicia said those are 'Presea's.


	6. Lloyd's wings

**Cat-Alin: **.. Sorry, Freaky, but that doesn't help telling me that stuff. I know this sounds like I'm some coldhearted bitch that doesn't care for anybody, but that's the way I am. I do not feel pity that easily for anybody.**  
Shihna: **You really do sound like a coldhearted bitch.**  
Cat-Alin: **Shihna, shove it and say the disclaimer. And I'm only like that right now, cause I can't meet 'him', okay!?**  
Shihna: **Geez, calm down. Cat-Alin doesn't won Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco and nor the OVA. If she did, the group wouldn't have analysed stuff half to death before acting.

"Ow .. stupid block .." Lloyd mumbled and got up, rubbing the back of his head.  
He looked around. He was in the lower part of the mine, next to a waterfall and there were loads of crates behind him.  
"Lloyd!" Collet called from afar. "Are you okay??"  
"Yeah!" he called back, watching the Bacura twirling back to it's original position. "Hey, Regal, you know this mine, right!?"  
"Yes .."  
"You know in which crate the inhibitor ore is?"  
"I do not know. I'm sorry."  
Lloyd grumbled and decided to use one of his swords to cut the tops of the crates clearly off. When he was down to a last one, he sighed.  
"This HAS to have the Ore in it." he mumbled and cut the top off. "Bingo!"  
He took a clump of inhibitor ore out and carved the charm into it. He then took a deep breath and ran up as fast as he could and jumped over the Bacura again. He landed beyond everybody else.  
"Terrific jump, Lloyd!" Genius complimented him.  
"This even exceeds your usual sporty records." Refill agreed. Lloyd blinked.

He was always good at sports. Except for Art, it was his best subject in school. So, was it the bigger amount of fights during the journey and watch-over which made him stronger and further to jump? Or maybe the angel transformation was exceeding his normal abilites as well. He already noticed how he could see farther and better than before.

"I've got the inhibitor ore. All we have to do now is get to Presea and attach it to her, right?" Lloyd said and grinned his usual way.  
They quickly went through the paths of the mine and stopped at the group of people at the entrance.  
"Vharley!" Regal growled. The fat man turned and smirked.  
"Ah, the Murderer himself. Good to see you." he smirked. "Considering that you are joining the Chosen instead of taking her to the place you are supposed to."  
Lloyd flinched.

He kept thinking that he wasn't really supposed to just follow Collet. He was supposed to bring her to Derris Quaran, to Yggdrasill and let her become Martel's vessel. But Refill made a comment that made him think that she suspects him and now this guy made one that reminded him of his actual duty. Was he getting paranoid with the guilt of hiding his actual, new nature from the others?

Vharley left, laughing and Genius frowned at Regal.  
"Murderer?"  
"I was originally imprisoned, because I have commited a murder." Regal confessed. "I understand if you now feel uncomfortable in my present. But do not worry. Once I know that Presea is fine, I will leave you again."  
They made their way to the EC and went over the water to Ozette.  
"Lloyd. Give me the inhibitor ore." Refill told her student, who was steering the EC.  
"What?" Lloyd asked and searched in his pocket. "Here."  
He took out the ore and gave it to Refill.  
"Why are you taking it, Ojou-sama?" Zelos asked.  
"Lloyd has a tendency to lose important things. Like his homework .." she glared at her student.  
Lloyd flinched.  
"B-but, Sensei, I told you" he stuttered. "When the bacon fat got onto my homework, Noishe gobbled it up!"

Of course, when they arrived in Ozette, they were greeted by some of the pope's guards. After they defeated them and were back to safety, Collet gave a deep sigh.  
"Guys, I'm sorry. This is my fault .." she sighed again.  
"Don't be like that, Collet-chan!" Zelos smiled and stroked her hair out of her face. Lloyd growled. "They also want me dead. Oujou-sama (Her Majesty) and Brat are wanted because they are halfelves. Regal is a convict who ran away apperantly. Lloyd and Presea are wanted because they are traitors to the crown. And Shihna is from Mizuho, who turned their back at the king now, too."  
"Don't think everything is your fault .." Lloyd tried to calm her down, considering how Zelos had just made him mad.  
"You're right .. I'm really so-" Collet began and flinched, falling to the ground. "OW!!"  
"Collet!?"  
Refill squated down to her and felt her forehead.  
"I don't know what's paining her, but she has a high fever!"  
"Let me at her .." somebody said and when there was a gap in the group, Presea walked through.  
"Presea?" Refill wondered. "Ok .."  
Presea stepped next to Collet and swung her axe at everyone, the others dodging in time. Then, she used the hilt of her axe to knock Collet unconscious.

What was Presea doing!?

"Huhahahaha!" the man they had seen at Presea's house laughed. "Perfect, Presea. Now, come with."  
The man jumped onto a dragon, another one picked up Collet in his claws.

Lloyd couldn't let Collet get taken away! He wanted to protect her! Always! And he didn't want to find out what Yggdrasill would do to him or his father, who had persuade him into becoming an underagent of Cruxis, if Collet was being taken away!

"Corrine!" Shihna hissed and the little animal popped out, knocking Presea over, who wanted to board another dragon. The dragons floated over the village.  
"Fuhihihi!" the man laughed. "I am the worst of the Grand Cardinals of the Desians. My name is Rodyle and the Chosen will help me achive my goal! Fuhahahaha!"  
He flew away, towards east and Lloyd got released out of his mental stiffness.  
"Wait!!" he yelled and ran from the center of the village onto the upper levels. "Collet! Give her back!!"

_I need to reach Collet!_

_I can't let her get kidnapped!_

_I need to reach Collet!!_

He stepped onto the banister next to the Inn and jumped off.  
A stab and burn coursed through his body and centered in his back. He felt his skin and clothes burst and flew upwards.

The didn't notice the others gasping. He didn't realize that his own wings had just revealed himself. Thus, he had busted his cover. He just flew upwards and glared at the dragon that Rodyle was riding, Collet lying unconscious in front of him.  
"Free Collet!!" he yelled and unsheathed his swords.  
Rodyle gasped and growled then.  
"Never!" he growled. "The Chosen is vital for my plans, you filthy half-angel!!"  
Lloyd charged at the Grand Cardinal, but Rodyle took something out from underneath his cloak and threw it at Lloyd. It hit his left shoulder and exploded. A bomb!  
The force threw him back and the splints of the exploded metal dug into his shoulder. His wings evaporated and he fell down.

"He has wings!"  
"But how can he have wings?"  
"Shh ..!"  
The group was in Presea's house. Refill had put on Presea's coarse keycrest, she had returned to her true self. They had just helped her to bury her father who had been dead for ages and Regal and Presea asked to join their group. Now, Lloyd, unconscious and bandaged, was lying in the second bed. The others discussing around him.  
"But, Nee-san, how can Lloyd have wings?" Genius asked. "He doesn't have a Cruxis Crystal and he isn't a Chosen, so how can he have gotten the wings?"  
"Either, it was in his genes or .." Refill started and stopped, not believing it.  
"Or .. or what?" Shihna asked insecure.  
Refill gulped and stared straight at them.  
"Or, he is part of Cruxis."  
"WHAT!?" the others yelled.  
"B-but .." Genius stuttered. "How? He opposes Cruxis! Probably even more than any of us!"  
"If he isn't part of Cruxis, how could he have gotten such a weird keycrest?" Refill asked. The keycrest she had noticed immediately.  
The shape was quite unique and she quickly figured out, that Dirk would never had made any crest like that.  
"W-well .. I think .." Genius spluttered. For once, he didn't have an answer.  
"But if he is an angel, he shouldn't have been able to get hurt so easily, would he?" Shihna asked. "You once said that through an angeltransformation, the angel doesn't feel pain and their defence in physical and mental attacks are much higher."  
"His angeltransformation may not be comeplete yet." Refill said and stepped to her student. "He got three broken ribs, several bruises and his arms are sprained. The splints of the bomb we were able to remove, but they must've had some kind of poweder in it to keep the wounds from healing through mana."  
They were all silent, wondering if it was true, that Lloyd had run over to Cruxis.

The door burst open and .. Kratos entered. He went straight past the group and to the bed where Lloyd was lying.  
"You!" Genius hissed.  
Kratos ignored him and threw the blanket off of Lloyd and picked him up. The boy flinched a little at the sudden movement, but then remained motionless in Kratos' arms.  
"What are you doing!?" Refill snapped at him.  
Kratos kept silent, put Lloyd's jacket, which was hanging over the back of a chair, over the boy and went towards the door again.  
"Where are you taking him!?" Refill asked and quickly blocked the door.  
"Move." the seraph said.  
Refill glared at him.  
"You should look for the Chosen. She's in the eastern skies." the seraph said and gently pushed Refill's knees sideways with his foot. She stumbled and freed the way to the door and the seraph left.  
"Wait!"  
The whole group ran outside and saw just in time how Kratos teleported away with Lloyd.

**Cat-Alin: **Argh, stupid migraine again.**  
Shihna: **Comes from not going outside-DON'T PINCH ME!!**  
Cat-Alin: **You deserved it. Talking in such a loud voice.**  
Shihna: **I was pretty much mumbling .. Merry Christmas to everyone. Reviews please, dear Readers?**  
Cat-Alin: **Horray for Freaky, since she now has read the chapter, where Lloyd gets his wings!


	7. The ceremony

**Cat-Alin: **.. I don't know why, but .. I like Collet's Theme!**  
Shihna: **What?**  
Cat-Alin: **I don't like Collet, but I do like the music of hers in the OVA!**  
Shihna: **That's bad?**  
Cat-Alin: **WHY does COLLET get to sing!? Why not a special where Kratos sings, like, 'Mountain Road' or 'Together' or 'Mirai ni Kaji o Tore'!?**  
Shihna: **Because they all are used in Koisuru Tenshi Angelique!**  
Cat-Alin: **Dammit!**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the OVA. If she did, Kratos would sing ..

Kratos layed Lloyd carefully down onto the bed with the darkblue sheets and put a hand to hover over his son's chest. He began to mutter something continously.  
The door zipped open.  
"Kratos-dono!" the angel said. "Yggdrasill-sama has summoned you!"  
Kratos stopped muttering and glared at the angel.  
"I desire to finish this first."  
"B-but, he says it's urgent!" the angel stuttered, knowing to well what happens to those who the angel glares at like that.  
Kratos growled and covered Lloyd with the blanket and quickly made his way to the leader.

"Kratos, you have come so quickly." Yggdrasill said. "I am pleased."  
The seraph kneeled down onto one knee.  
"Yggdrasill-sama, I want to apologize for the taking of the Chosen." he said quickly. "It is not Lloyd's mistake. It seems that the Grand Cardinal Rodyle has taken the Chosen to his hideout in the skies of Tethe'alla."  
Yggdrasill waved his hand.  
"I was not going to blame your precious son, Kratos." the Leader said. "I merely brought you here to ask you .. you have noticed the change of the Chosen's condition?"  
Kratos nodded.  
"Yes."  
"You have warned the Chosen, yes?"  
"I told her to remove the crest, if she wants to 'live'."  
"Good .. so, you do know what has made the change."  
"Yes. The keycrest. But-"  
"Yes." Yggdrasill stopped him. "It would have happened, regardless if the crest had brought back the Chosen's soul or not. I have no intention on blaming your son's dwarven skills for that."  
Kratos nodded.  
"And I assume, you have taken the boy with you after the incident in Ozette?"  
".. Yes. Right now, he is resting in my chambers. I wanted to heal his wounds, when you called." Kratos confessed.  
"Do that. And then, let him rest to fully regain his strength. He will have a great honor to receive later on." the Leader of the Angels said and dismissed the seraph.

Kratos hurried back to his chambers and after making sure that Lloyd was resting, although still wounded, he took out one of the thick, ancient looking books from a shelf and leaved through it.  
Upon finding what he searched for, he stepped to his son, his hand once more hovering over the boy's chest. He started to mutter continously again. His hand began to glow and the bruises started to pale, the wounds closing themselves.  
The boy threw his eyes open and jerked up.  
"Collet! Let her go!" he yelled and noticing the sudden change of area, he started to struggle. "Where am I? Who took me here!? Let me go!"  
"Lloyd!!"  
The boy flinched and looked at his father.  
"Oh .. Dad .. it's you .." he mumbled and sighed, holding his head.  
Kratos put the book back into the shelf and returned. Lloyd looked horrified.  
"I, I'm back on Derris Quaran? Why? What happened? I didn't get Collet back, I'm sorry! I got attacked and couldn't reach Collet anymore and" he spluttered. "Oh dear Martel, am I in trouble for letting Collet get taken away!?"  
"No."  
"Are you in trouble!?"  
"No, Lloyd-"  
"I swear! I didn't want to lose Collet! I tried to get her back, my wings-" Lloyd flinched. "Yeah, my wings errupted from my back and I tried to get a hit at Rodyle, but he threw a bomb of some sort at me and my wings evaporated and I fell and .. Oh, Dad, I'm SO sorry for letting Collet get taken!"  
Kratos calmed the boy down.  
"Do not worry. Neither Yggdrasill, nor I am blaming you for letting Collet get taken away."  
".. Ok." the boy said, gasping for air, he was still so excited and worried.

"Your wings have shown themselves-"  
"Ah! I showed my wings infront of everyone!" Lloyd realized and was about to panic again, when Kratos grabbed him by the shoulders and held him steady.  
"Lloyd, calm down!" Kratos sighed. "Yes, your wings have shown themselves in a rather bad moment, thus everybody in your group now knows you have wings. So, alas, they probably know you're a part of Cruxis now."  
"WHAT!?" Lloyd yelled. "B-but I never agreed to be part of Cruxis! I agreed to become an angel, so I wouldn't 'get my head chopped off, if I left these rooms' as you told me! I never said I'd work for Cruxis!"  
Kratos called an angel and ordered him something, after trying to calm his son down again.  
Lloyd was breathing fast, trying to get all the information in his head and grasp it.  
"Lloyd, relax. Your wounds are healed, but you need to calm down." Kratos warned him.  
Lloyd took a shaky long breath and sighed.  
"Oh .." he mumbled. "I still can't believe I'm not able to protect Collet!"  
Kratos frowned.  
"Listen, Lloyd. Relax. Rest a bit. Yggdrasill will want to see you later on." Kratos said and held his finger up as a warning for Lloyd to not freak out again.  
"But .." Lloyd said, trying to remain calm. "How can I relax and rest, if I have so much stuff to think about?"  
The angel came back with a tray with a keg and a mug on it, he put it onto the table next to the picture of Anna.  
Kratos got up and typed on a little panel, locking the door. Then, he sat back down next to the boy and put a deep-blue liquid into the mug.  
"Here. Drink this." he said and gave the cup to Lloyd. "It's a potion that will let you relax and sleep a dreamless sleep. You will be perfectly rested."  
Lloyd took the mug and hesitated a moment, before drinking it. The emptier the mug got, the sleepier Lloyd felt and Kratos had to hold the mug a bit up, so Lloyd would take the last gulp, before the boy fell asleep, leaning on his father's shoulder.

Lloyd opened his eyes after a long sleep and noticed Kratos sitting next to him, propped up against a pillow and stroking his hair a bit.  
"I remember the day you were born" Kratos said, when he noticed that Lloyd was awake. "Anna and I had found shelter in an Inn in Luin."  
"Luin ..?" Lloyd asked.  
".. Anna was born there as well." Kratos smiled a bit. "She got into labour at about three in the morning. You took quite some time to get into this world, you lazy bum."  
Lloyd looked embaressed, but he wasn't annoyed. Kratos was grinning, so he knew he didn't mean it seriously. The boy blushed a bit.  
"Did .. did it hurt?" he asked.  
"Yes, Anna was in pain when you were born." Kratos answered. "But she was so happy when you were out that she forgot all the pain. I almost had to beg her to get you in my arms once."  
Lloyd laughed.  
"We had discussed some names for you and after noticing your eyecolor, we decided on the name 'Lloyd'."  
"Why my eyecolor?"  
"Because your hair was the chocolate brown color of your mother, we figured you'd probably have her eyecolor as well. But your eyes weren't green, they were my brown."  
"Who of you suggested my name?"  
"Anna did." Kratos said and Lloyd looked excited about the thought that his name was given to him originally by his mother. The seraph grinned. "Be glad we agreed on Lloyd. I would've called you Kratos Jr."  
"Dad, that's really old-fashioned .." Lloyd smirked cheerfully. "But considering your _really old_ age, that's understandable."  
Kratos and Lloyd burst out laughing.

Lloyd gulped. He tried to calm down, Kratos was fastening the tiara-like pendant behind his head.  
Lloyd was dressed in a wide, white robe with golden and purple wave-like molding around the hemline. The tiara-pendant was golden and his hair was not standing up as usual, but sort of falling down now.  
"Don't worry, Lloyd. The ceremony is easy." Kratos calmed the boy down. The seraph was dressed in an outfit that resembeled his Cruxis Uniform, but without the belts and it was dark, a black sash thrown over his shoulder and tied loosely with a belt around his waist.  
"I know .. I just don't feel very comfortable with this." Lloyd confessed. "I didn't do anything great. I totally messed up my assignment!"  
"Probably he is thinking that giving you this ceremony and title will boost your self-esteem and give you the confidence to fulfill your duty this time." his father guessed.  
"But I don't want to be a in a high position in Cruxis! I actually want to get out!"  
"That's not going to happen."  
Lloyd sighed annoyed and an angel entered.  
"Excuse me, but the ceremony is about to begin. Everything is prepared." the angel said.  
"Very well."

Kratos put an arm around Lloyd's shoulder and led him outside of the chamber. Lloyd gulped when he saw the long entourage of thousands of angels standing in two lines, making a passageway that Lloyd had to walk through, Yggdrasill at the end, he dressed in a golden robe, smirking to himself. Kratos gave Lloyd a tiny pat on the shoulder for encouragement and took his place to the right of Yggdrasills.  
Lloyd slowly walked through the passage and knelt down, when he stopped in front of Yggdrasill.  
"Lloyd Aurion" the Leader of Angels said loudly. "You, who has just been recently in our grand Organization of Cruxis, have proven well to us. Your angeltransformation is not yet finished, but soon you will be a complete angel. I therefore will grant you the title of 'Seraph' for I wish for your duty to lie completely with me and do your best for us. Do you accept this title and the therefore standing duty?"  
"I do." Lloyd said, humbly.  
"Will you continue to please Cruxis' needs and do anything that will help us?"  
"I will."  
"And you will show no regret for losing your humanity or your permanent living on either of the planets?"  
".. I shall never regret .. Yggdrasill-sama." Lloyd said, hesitating a bit.  
Yggdrasill smirked happily.  
"Then, you are now known as the fifth seraphim in Cruxis and can do as you like." Yggdrasill said and the angels started to cheer out in a perfectly stiff way when Yggdrasill casted a spell onto Lloyd, that made the pendant glow golden and something got carved into the stone by air.

Lloyd got up, his eyes still more on the floor than looking at Yggdrasill.  
"I wish for you to continue to watch over the Chosen and bring her here at the next best opportuinty." Yggdrasill said and Lloyd nodded. "If you desire for help from your father or me, let us know."  
The Leader left and Lloyd sighed, looking over insecure at his father. Kratos smirked and gave him a thumbs-up sign to show that he had done good.

Lloyd gasped, when he saw his own private chambers next to his father's. The scheme was a red-black and was furnished similar to Kratos' rooms, except that the room was smaller and there was a group of three chairs instead of five around a fire.  
Kratos motioned the boy over and sat down with him on the sofa, a thick book on his lap.  
"Lloyd, I know you may not like studying, but considering that you are now officially a seraph, you should know the angel language." he said.  
Lloyd looked horrified.  
"I need to study ..? Oooh .." he moaned and sulked.  
"Can't be helped. Unless you want Refill to teach you."  
"No way!" the boy disagreed quickly. "Besides, if I'm now known as an angel to them, I don't think she'll like me in her classroom or anywhere close to her and the others."  
"Plus, you should get a bit more knowledge up there." Kratos said, knocking his son lightly on the forehead. "So, better read this until tomorrow."  
Lloyd looked at the thick book on his father's lap and paled.  
"Dad, I can't even read ten pages in front of class, because I get bored of books. You want me to read that until tomorrow?"  
Kratos nodded and started to tell Lloyd the basics of the angel language.

The next morning, when Kratos got up and went into Lloyd's room, he didn't find him in bed. He looked around and saw him on the sofa, his head hanging low and sleeping. Kratos smirked.  
"Lloyd, wake up." he said and shook the boy a bit.  
Lloyd started and looked around sleepy.  
"Mh? Oh, morning, Dad .." he said and yawned. "I managed .."  
"What?"  
"I managed to finish that book .." Lloyd mumbled, closing the book finally. He looked really tired.  
Kratos smirked.  
"And I've got the language of angels pretty much in my head." Lloyd tapped his temple and smiled. "Ah, and everything is turning .."  
Kratos grinned and steadied the boy.  
"Alright. Want to rest some more, before going back to the Chosen's group?"  
"What? But how?" Lloyd said, sounding more awake. "They saw my wings. And if I suddenly come back .. they'll never believe that I'm fully on their side."  
Kratos waved his hand.  
"Don't worry. Go back and answer any questions they have. Truthfully."  
"Tell them I'm with Cruxis, so I can get Collet to give up her soul again and let Martel be resurrected?!"  
Kratos laughed.  
"Maybe not that. Just go. We will still be in contact." the seraph assured him.  
".. Where are they now?" Lloyd asked.  
"On their way to Mizuho. They spent the night there." Kratos told him. "And Lloyd: Make sure they don't form pacts with every summonspirit."  
"What? Why?"  
"A mana link will be broken, if they form a pact with two counterparts."  
"Oh, ok." Lloyd said, remembering what the book had said about mana links.  
"It is alright for them to form a pact with Volt. Otherwise, you will never get the Chosen back." Kratos said. "Well .. you would, or any other angel. But not with the group."  
Lloyd nodded and stepped onto the teleporter.  
"Dad, next time I'm here, you have to teach me how to teleport!" Lloyd grinned.  
Kratos returned the grin.  
"Alright. Watch out for yourself, Lloyd." he said and waved a bit.

Lloyd looked around quickly where he was. He got teleported to the entrance of the Gaoracchia Forest on the Ozette Side.  
"Alright, now to hurry and catch up." he said and entered the forest, running along the right path and came to a stop in front of the japanese village. He entered it and wanted to ask one of the people where Refill was, when he saw the group coming out of the vice-chief's house.  
Shihna looked rather pale.  
"Hey, guys!" Lloyd called and waved to them.  
They spotted him and Genius wanted to run ahead, but Refill stopped him and they all slowly walked over to him.  
"Hello, Lloyd." Refill said, sounding more distant than ever. "Back from your trip?"  
"Um .." Lloyd answered, caught off guard. "Guys, um, I know I disappeared suddenly and .. uh .. well, I'm here to join you again and rescue Collet."  
"Why do you have wings?" Refill asked suddenly.  
Lloyd flinched.  
"W-what?"  
"You know exactly what I mean, Lloyd Irving. Talk!"  
Lloyd sighed and rubbed the back of his head.  
"Alright .. alright, I'll tell you .." the boy said.

**Cat-Alin: **Hehe, this story is starting to get a lot of fun now!**  
Shihna: **And you still don't know how to work our everything.**  
Cat-Alin: **No .. But I'll think of something.**  
Shihna: **Mhm .. Reviews please, dear Readers?


	8. Volt

**Cat-Alin: **-cleaning up her room very fast-**  
Shihna: **What's the hurry?**  
Cat-Alin: **Well, considering I haven't done this for about three weeks, there's a lot of clothes on the floor. And my Dad is picking me up in about forty minutes!**  
Shihna: **Ooookay. Whatever. Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the OVA. If she did, the Graphics would've been better

Lloyd gulped.  
They were sitting in an empty room in one of the houses in Mizuho, all eyes locked onto Lloyd.  
"Alright, Lloyd, we want some answers." Refill said, crossing her arms.  
"Just exactly what is it you want an answer on?" Lloyd asked, loosening his collar and trying to win some time.  
"We'll start with the most obvious one." Refill said. "Why do you have wings?"  
Lloyd flinched.

He couldn't tell them the WHOLE truth, about how he was a new-named seraph in the order of Cruxis and he was supposed to take Collet there, not keep her away, what he actually wanted to do. He couldn't tell them about the angeltransformation, because that would lead to the first problem and .. Idea!

"Truth is .." Lloyd said and sighed. "I am a half-angel."  
"What?" everybody asked.  
"A half-angel? What are you trying to pull off, Lloyd!?" Refill asked, knowing that there was no such thing as 'half-angel'.  
"I'm not pulling off anything!" Lloyd replied, stretching the truth a tiny bit. "I really am a half-angel. My Dad is an angel."  
"Your father?" Genius asked. "But you don't know who your real father is, Lloyd!"  
"Actually .." Lloyd rubbed the back of his head and sighed. "I found out. It's Kratos."  
"WHAT!?" everybody yelled.  
"Yeah .."  
"B-but .." Genius just could say. "How did you ..?"  
"He told me. When he took me to Derris Quaran the first time, he told me."  
"It makes sense .." Refill nodded, remembering her suspicion towards Kratos' behavior considering Lloyd.  
"So .. why did you get wings now?"  
"It's that keycrest of yours."  
Lloyd jumped about a foot and stared at the golden shape on his exsphere.  
"Uh .. yeah. It's a keycrest that subdues the exsphere-parasitism by 90 . And it evolved my exsphere, so I got wings."  
"But you have all your other senses still, don't you?" Refill asked.  
"Yeah! I, I can still eat and sleep and feel pain and such." Lloyd stammered.

He was still able to eat. Just not the amount he used to eat. He could probably still eat the same amount, but only by force with the same speed or much slower. Although it didn't taste like anything.

"Very well .. where did Kratos take you to, when he got you from Ozette?" Refill asked.  
"Back to Derris Quaran. He healed my wounds and-"  
"And .. what?"  
Lloyd hesitated a moment.  
"He healed my wounds." Lloyd said. "And taught me some stuff."  
That wasn't a lie.  
"Nee-san, come on. Lloyd makes perfect sense .. which is something astounding, considering it's coming from Lloyd." Genius said and smirked.  
"Brat .." Lloyd mumbled.  
"Very well .." Refill sighed. "I will ask no more questions .. unless I see something suspicious from you .."  
Lloyd nodded, looking nervous.  
"Where were you guys off to?" the secret-seraph asked.  
"On the way to Volt's temple. We need him to get the rheairds. And save Collet." Refill told him and they got up.  
"Ah."  
Shihna gulped and went stiffly ahead to a pier, where they took the EC out.

They drove over the water to the Temple of Lightning and when they arrived, Shihna gulped another time and opened the door.  
"There's not Oraclestone?" Genius wondered.  
"It's the flourishing world. It may not yet be a sealpalace." Refill guessed and they stepped through the passages.  
"Argh!!" Lloyd stepped back just in time when a lightning bolt hit where his foot was a second ago. "That was close!"  
"We should move rather fast, considering the chance of getting hit by lightning." Regal said.

Lloyd was hanging back just a tiny bit and was deep in his thoughts.  
Breaking a mana link was devastating. Not just for Cruxis, but for Sylvarant and Tethe'alla as well. With the earthquake, houses could fall and people die. But if Lloyd would keep them from forming the pact, Refill would question him again. And he'd never be able to convince her or the others that he wouldn't work for Cruxis OR that he would have finished a thick book AND understood it.

They were standing in front of the altar and a huge lightning bolt exploded on it and Volt appeared.  
"My name is Shihna and I wish to establish a pact with Volt, the summonspirit of Thunder." Shihna said, trying to sound less nervous than she was.  
Volt didn't react.  
He actually did, but nobody noticed it.  
"Dammit! What the HECK is he saying!?" the summoner cursed.  
"Calm down." Refill said. "I can translate. 'I am bound to the hero Mithos'."  
"Mithos?" Genius wondered. "How can he have a pact with sylvarant and tethe'allan Spirits? .. Maybe he had a rheaird as well .."  
Lloyd frowned. He understood Volt! He heard what Volt said. Rather dimly, like it was played through an old radio and not very clearly. The sentences were hacked off, since Lloyd didn't know all of the words yet.  
"Please, nullify your pact with Mithos and establish a pact with me, Volt!"  
Volt sparked.  
" 'I will not do any bidding from humans anymore. Leave!' "  
Shihna growled and clenched her fists.  
"No! You have to help us!"  
A lightning shower hit everybody and they tried to get back up.  
Shihna gasped.  
"Guys ..!" she said, remembering the first time this happened.

When Volt tried to attack her, Corrine - the fake summonspirit - jumped in front of her and took the attack.  
".. Corrine!!" Shihna yelled and knelt down to the poor little creature.  
While Shihna tried to keep Corrine from dying, Lloyd jumped ahead and blocked the attacks Volt was sending towards the summoner.  
"Shihna!!" Lloyd snapped at the summoner. "I understand your sorrow, but pull yourself together! Fight Volt, get his power by force! Or do you want Corrine's death to be futile!?"  
Shihna clenched her teeth and glared at the summonspirit.  
"For the sake of everyone .. Volt! Give me your power!!"

They fought for a long time against Volt, his lightning attacks coming sudden and in high friction.  
It was not only Lloyd's hair that was standing up after the fight.  
" 'What is your vow for the pact?' " Refill translated for Volt.  
"For the sake of all people .. and for Corrine, I will change the system of the two worlds." Shihna vowed and Volt disappeared.

Lloyd had to act fast now. Or else, the two counterparts would appear and tell them about the mana links. Thus, they would start to search for the other spirits and make pacts with them and destroy the cage around the Eternal Seed. Lloyd looked around for a way to distract them.

_POOF_!  
A ninja with blue clothes appeared in front of them and smiled at Shihna.  
"Shihna, congratulations." he said. "You managed to form the pact with Volt."  
".. Th-thanks." Shihna said, embaressed.  
"Wow, that Poof-Thing is just soooo cool!" Lloyd said hyper, trying to distract everybody from the slight glowing of the Sardonyx and the Aquamarin in Shihna's wingpack. "You're a ninja from Mizuho, right? And you found the rheairds, right!?"  
The others had told him how Mizuho was locating the rheairds for them, while they formed the pact.  
".. Yes, I did. It's in the base of the Renegades, close to Flanoir." he said. "Use the EC to get there."  
He left with another _poof_ and Lloyd sighed.  
"Come on, let's hurry!" Genius said and they ran out, eager to get the rheairds and save Collet. Lloyd stopped and picked something up.  
"Oi, Shihna!" he called.  
The summoner stopped and stared at the thing in Lloyd's hand.  
"Here. It's Corrine's .. bell." he said and gave it to her.  
"Thank you, Lloyd." Shihna said and Lloyd laughed embaressed. They caught up with the others.  
Lloyd was the only worried one about the upcoming earthquake because of the broken manalink.

**Cat-Alin: **Hehe ..**  
Shihna: **Had fun with your Dad?**  
Cat-Alin: **Mhm. He can make funny noises with his mouth and the dog was .. Ok, I hate dogs, but that dog is okay. As long as he doesn't run towards me.**  
Shihna: **Mhm ..**  
Cat-Alin: **Merry Christmas everybody! I'm getting into the spirit! .. Or I am just hyped up about getting new stuff for which _I_ didn't have to pay.**  
Shihna: **.. Reviews, dear readers?  
**Cat-Alin:** And my room still isn't 100 clean ..


	9. Getting Collet back

**Shihna: **How about cleaning up your room than writing on this story?**  
Cat-Alin: **If cleaning my room would be as much fun as writing stories, my room would have a hardwood floor instead of a carpet.**  
Shihna: **.. What!?**  
Cat-Alin: **It'd be so much fun to put it in .. and besides .. my mom would stop nagging at me for eating my soups and such in my room.**  
Shihna: **Well, you do have a tendency to spill stuff.**  
Cat-Alin: **I can't help it! My arms and legs are weapons of gravity!**  
Shihna: **.. Whatever. Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the OVA. If she did, there would've been a duel between Kratos and Zelos.

They drove around in the EC around the many cliffs and searched for the hidden Renegade Base.  
"Lloyd" Refill asked. "Do you know what Renegades are?"  
The boy blinked.  
"Uh .. yeah, sort of." Lloyd said, telling a tiny fib. "Kratos told me a bit about the Renegades. You know, on Derris Quaran. But nothing specific."  
Refill nodded.  
"How much do you know?"  
Lloyd had a sudden thought.

He knew that the Renegades were a bunch of half-elves who hated Cruxis, more specifially, they hated Yggdrasill-slash-Mithos, since the leader hated him. And the leader was supposed to be the fiancé of the 'godess' Martel before she died. Although Kratos always avoided the answer of the 'and who exactely is the leader?' question.

"Um .. I know that they are opposing Cruxis." Lloyd said. ".. So, they're basically on our side, right?"  
Refill nodded and started to tell him a bit more. Like how they didn't want to stop Cruxis, but to stop Martel's resurrection.  
"Although, we do not know why they-" she stopped.  
"Something wrong, Sensei?"  
"Oh, it was nothing." Refill said quickly, remembering how the leader -since the others had talked to him - wanted to get Lloyd.

They finally found the base and after putting the EC back into it's bag, they carefully ran towards the door.  
"Renegade!" Lloyd called out and was ready to unsheath his swords, when Orochi calmed him down.  
"Don't worry. He's one of our people." he said. "We sneak some into the Renegades' base to keep tabs on Sylvarant."  
The Ninja-Renegade let them in and Orochi brought them into a tiny room.  
"We've found out that the rheairds are in the hangar of this base." Orochi told them. "Now that you've got a pact with Volt, they should have no problem with their flight. Except, that the dimensional transfer does not work."  
"What do you mean?" Shihna asked.  
"The transfer system has to be active and fully charged to work." Orochi explained.  
"So, we were actually just lucky last time." Refill said.  
"Seems so." Orochi said. "But you won't be able to get that easily to the hangar. There's a code that locks the door to it."  
"Then give us the code, please." Refill asked.  
"Sadly, we had no chance to gain the code." Orochi sighed. "But three Renegades have the code on them. You should find them easily."

So, they ran through the base, searching for any Renegade, that had a code on himself.  
"The mana of the tree is the source of Martel's life .." Lloyd muttered, repeating the whole code. "That sounds like something that Cruxis says."  
"What did you say, Lloyd?" Refill asked, suspicious.  
"Uh, I meant" Lloyd stammered. "I heard an angel say that to another one on Derris Quaran .. and hearing it here seems to me like the Renegades are the same as Cruxis."  
"Hmm .." Refill went and they stepped onto the lift, which took them quickly to the top.

They entered the code and entered the hangar, the rheairds right in front of them.  
"You've come like moths to the light." A man with long blue hair in a ponytail stepped towards them.  
"What a square thing to say .." Zelos muttered.  
"What are you planning, Yuan?" Refill asked, who sensed danger.  
Yuan grinned.  
"Game's over, Lloyd." he said. "Your ass is mine!"  
"Eeeewwwww!" Zelos and Lloyd cried.  
"That sounded SO twisted." Lloyd sighed. "You popping the lid here or what?"  
Yuan blushed and then growled.  
"Fun's over!" he snapped at them and got out his huge axe-sword. "This time I'm not gonna let you run!"

The group fought against Yuan and his right-hand man, Botta. They tried to get Yuan down first, since his lightningtechniques were doing the most damage, but Botta kept throwing off their concentration with his earthspells.  
Eventually, they defeated them.  
"Damn .." Yuan cursed and glared at Lloyd. "This isn't 'your' exsphere anymore, boy."  
"What?" Lloyd frowned.  
"Lloyd! No time for discussion! Let's hurry!" Regal said and they jumped onto the rheairds, flying off, just when the earthquake started.  
"What's with this earthquake?" Genius wondered.  
"Doesn't matter!" Lloyd snapped at him and flew towards the east. "We need to get Collet!"  
They searched the sky off until they found a mushroom shaped island floating in the sky.  
"Found you, Rodyle!!" Lloyd yelled and landed onto the platform, his rheaird put back into his bag.  
Collet was trapped in a magic barrier.  
"Guys!" she exclaimed, when she saw them. "Leave!"  
Lloyd growled.  
"We're here to save you, you dork!" he snapped at her.  
Collet looked taken back.  
"But .." she mumbled. "But this is a trap .."  
Rodyle stepped next to Collet's cage.  
"You and Vharley used me ..!" Presea hissed and swung her axe at him, him disappearing.  
"Teleportation .." Lloyd mumbled, grabbed his sword and swung it once behind him.  
The blade cut open the cloak of Rodyle, who had teleported behind the boy, and gave a nice deep slash onto Rodyle's back.  
"Argh! You damn .. but whatever. You can take your petty Chosen if you want to. So useless. No wonder Yggdrasill-sama left her alone!" Rodyle cried out and grinned maniacally. "You'll die here! My dear pets, come!"  
Rodyle teleported away once more and four huge dragons appeared.  
"What the heck!?" Zelos asked.  
"Hiryuu." Presea said. "Evolved form of the airdragon. Chance of surviving on tiny platform is 1 percent."  
Lloyd unsheathed both of his swords with a menancing grin.  
"Well, we'll just kill them before they kill us." he said and charged at the first dragon.

The dragons were easily defeated.  
The ground started to shake and orange mana flooded the platform.  
"What-" Lloyd cursed and found his feet to be stuck.  
"It's Collet's mana!" Refill noticed. "Her mana is overflowing and is keeping us .."  
"I'm sorry, guys .." Collet sighed. "This is all my fault .. Rodyle is right .. I'm such a useless Chosen .."  
"It's not your fault. Any of this." Presea said and strained herself to step closer to Collet's cage. "You .. haven't done anything wrong."  
She broke the cage with her axe, but got hit by a last wave of mana. The ground continued to shake and was about to fall into the sea.  
"We need to get out of here!" Refill called and everybody boarded their rheairds and left, Refill taking Presea onto hers.  
"Come on!" Lloyd urged Collet on, who didn't move.  
"This really is my fault .." Collet mumbled.  
Lloyd growled, grabbed Collet by her wrist and yanked her onto his rheaird.  
"Always trouble with you ..!" he grumbled and stepped onto his rheaird as well and followed the others to a safe distant, while the platform sank with increasing speed.  
"Sorry, Lloyd .." Collet mumbled. Lloyd just growled.

"Say, Collet-chan, why did Rodyle take you, anyway?" Zelos asked.  
They were sitting around their camp, waiting for Presea to regain consciousness.  
"He said he needed a Cruxis Crystal to work his mana cannon." Collet said. ".. And .. mine appearantly didn't work .."  
"Mana cannon?" Refill asked. "The same 'Thor's Hammer' from the ancient war, the one Pietro was talking about in Haima?"  
"Seems so .." Collet sighed.  
"Hey, Presea is waking up!" Genius called out and kneeled down to the girl.  
Presea sat up and looked at Collet.  
"Collet-san .. are you alright?"  
Collet nodded and smiled.  
"Yes. Thanks to you."  
Presea smiled!  
"She resembles her so much .." Regal muttered to himself.  
"Mh?" Presea turned her head to the convict.  
Regal cleared his throat and looked away.

"Well, what to do now?" Genius asked.  
They had put up a little camp for the rest of the day, since Presea looked rather wobbly on her knees.  
"Well, Collet has her soul back and we have the rheairds." Refill sighed. "We could go back to Sylvarant and search for a way to give Sylvarant - and Tethe'alla - more mana, defeating the Desians .. but not sacrificing one of the Chosen's life."  
They all looked rather uncomfortable.  
"But .." Genius said. "We'd be able to see each other, right?"  
Everyone looked at the little half-elf boy.  
"I mean, I'd be very sad not to be able to see Presea" Genius blushed. "a-and the others anymore. If we go back to Sylvarant."  
"We'd be able to see each other. We have the rheairds, they are a link between the two worlds." Refill calmed him down.  
"Oh, that'd be great! We can live in Sylvarant, but still see each other!" Collet chirped and looked over to Lloyd, who was frowning down at the ground. "Lloyd, isn't that a great idea?"  
Lloyd got up and stomped away, muttering a "Excuse me for a bit".

The boy ripped off his glove and tapped the communicator.  
"Dad, get that faggot of a boss of ours down here, so I can ask him what the fuck is going on here!!" he snapped.  
'_Yggdrasill never goes down to the worlds. You'd have to come here._'  
Lloyd cursed.

If he left now, the others would look for him and he'd get another questioning down his throat and Refill would never let him off easily then. She'd ask him questions that he wouldn't be able to avoid and everything would come out. And Lloyd would never hear the end of that.

Lloyd ran into something that made him stumble backwards.  
A firm hand grabbed his arm and steadied the boy.  
"Dad!"  
Kratos nodded and let go.  
"What are you doing here?" Lloyd asked, feeling calmer than before.  
"Yggdrasill sent me." Kratos said. "And change your language, boy."  
Lloyd just grumbled.  
"Now, what is it you wanted to ask?" the seraphim looked at the other one.  
Lloyd sighed.  
"We were at the Renegade Base here, for the rheairds, and we fought the leader." Lloyd said, not noticing how Kratos started to frown when he had mentioned the leader. "We defeated him and his companion and managed to get away just when the earthquake started."  
"Do they know about the mana links?" Kratos asked worried. 'They' meaning the group.  
"No. They didn't notice the paralell rings glowing." Lloyd said, shaking his head. "But I wonder .. the leader said something that worries me."  
"Which is?"  
Lloyd gripped his exsphere and tightened his hand over it.  
"He said that my exsphere is no longer 'my' exsphere. What did he mean by that?"  
Kratos frowned.  
"I don't know. Either he tried to confuse you, which he succeeded in, or .. he knows about your changed keycrest and that your exsphere is evolving into a Cruxis Crystal. Therefore, no longer an exsphere."  
Lloyd sighed and crossed his arms.  
"Why can't these people just say what they mean?"  
"Well, usually people tend to have more brains than you do."  
"Dad!" Lloyd snapped flushed and started to laugh when he saw Kratos' smirk.  
Kratos ruffled the boy's hair.  
"But, Dad, what shall I do, if they DO find out about the mana links?" Lloyd asked.  
His father opened his mouth to say something, but a burst of light came from the group's camp and the two seraphim turned.  
Volt and Undine were hovering like ghosts over them.  
"Oh, Dammit!" Lloyd cursed and ran towards the camp.

"So .. if we form pacts with all of the elemental spirits, the two worlds will be seperated and not vye for each other's mana anymore?" Refill asked.  
Undine nodded while, Volt didn't say anything.  
"Yes."  
Lloyd just appeared back at the camp, when the two elemental spirits disappeared.  
"Oh, Lloyd!" Collet cheered when she noticed the teenager was back. "You missed something great! Mister Volt and Miss Undine told us about something called 'mana links'. They're uphold by the elemental spirits and .. um .."  
"Not quite right, Collet .." Refill sighed. "They're held up by the pacts. If the pacts of two opposite emental spirits - water and thunder, fire and ice, earth and wind, darkness and light - are renewed by one person, the mana links break and the two worlds drift apart."  
Lloyd cursed under his breath and tried to look calm.  
"But doesn't the pact have to be renewed by the original pact-maker?" he asked, playing the role of the dumbass.  
"Not nessecarily." Refill said. "It just has to be the same person, who has the pact with the two opposite elemental spirits."  
"Isn't that great, Lloyd?" Collet asked and took Lloyd's left hand into her hands. "We found a way to seperate the worlds from each other without sacrificing any lives!"  
Lloyd plastered a grin on his face.  
"Lloyd? What's wrong?" Collet asked and looked down at Lloyd's hand. "Your arm is shivering. Are you hurt?"  
"Uh, No! It's nothing!" Lloyd stammered and freed his arm from the girl's grasps. "I just think it's a tad cold."  
He rubbed his right hand over his left wrist, as if he'd want to rub some warmth into it, but in fact he was stopping the communicator from vibrating anymore.  
"So .. we're going to form pacts with the elemental spirits?" Lloyd asked.  
"Of course." Shihna said. "And the next closest one is Gnome. He's right over there." The summoner pointed towards the north-west where a cave was.  
".. Okay." Lloyd said.  
"Now, who's going to take over night-watch?" Refill asked, since the sun was starting to set. "Not Presea or Collet, they both got badly wounded before."  
A little discussion came up and the first watch was going to be done by Regal, then Refill.

Lloyd sat up straight, looking around.  
"Something wrong, Lloyd?" Refill asked. The darkness of the night was only partly lighted by the fire in the middle.  
Everyone else was sleeping, except for Refill and Lloyd.  
"Uh .. no, nothing. I just woke up all of the sudden .." Lloyd mumbled, rubbing his neck.  
Refill's eyes slanted in a suspiscious way.  
"Try to go back to sleep, Lloyd. Tomorrow is going to be a hard day." the teacher said, but Lloyd shook his head.  
"No, I can't fall asleep anymore."  
"What happened to my student, who was able to fall straight back to sleep after I threw chalk at him?" Refill asked in a playful way.  
"Uh, nothing .." Lloyd said and laughed embaressed. "Want me to take over, Sensei?"  
"Aren't you tired from waking up so suddenly?" she asked.  
"No, not at all. I'm wide-awake."  
"Hmmmmm ..?" Refill's eyebrows went up.  
"I, I mean, I could, you know, stay awake for a few hours. Because, no offense, you look tired, Sensei."  
Refill thought about it a while and took his offer for taking over.  
"Wake in a few hours again and I'll take back over. You need sleep as well." she said and lay down next to Genius.  
"Yes, no problem .." Lloyd said and waited a bit.  
When Refill's chest was rising steadily, Lloyd peaked underneath his glove for the old message of Kratos.

'_Don't try to stop them from forming the pacts. I'll let an analysis from the core-system. Try to hold them back a bit, but don't cause suspision._'

Lloyd sighed.  
He would do his best from keeping them from forming the pacts. But how was he going to be able to do that without making Sensei more suspicious of him than she already was?

**Cat-Alin:** I confess, a weird ending for the chapter ..**  
Shihna: **And you're starting to get not-interested in this story, right?**  
Cat-Alin: **... Blame my love.**  
Shihna: **You have hung around too much with Kratos.**  
Cat-Alin: **Whatever.**  
Shihna: **Reviews, please, dear readers?


	10. Spell on Shadow

**Cat-Alin: **.. I do not know how to put more Plot Twists in this ..**  
Shihna: **Mhm ..?**  
Cat-Alin: **And I don't know HOW or WHEN Lloyd is going to be revealed to them. I THOUGHT, I'd do it in Welgaia itself, but that's too late in the storyline, I think.**  
Shihna: **Mhm. -turning a page of her 'How to get rid of Redhaired Oversexed Young Twens' magazine-**  
Cat-Alin: **Listen to me, dammit!**  
Shihna: **Yeah, yeah, whatever. Cat-Alin doesn't own Namco, nor Tales of Symphonia, nor the OVA. If she did, she'd had chosen a different Director for the OVA, since THIS director is ADDICTED to 'official' pairings.**  
Cat-Alin: **Which is the reason why the episodes are DROOLING of Colloyd .. -hate-

The next morning, they entered Gnome's temple and Collet .. tripped of course.  
"I really wonder how she is able to trip over nothing." Lloyd sighed.  
"Hey! I'm not 'nothing'!!" a tiny high voice squeaked.  
They all looked around and when they didn't see anything, they looked down.

A tiny creature was there, growling. Collet's huge foot was behind him and a bump on the little creature's head indicated, where Collet had hit it.  
Collet got up and dusted herself off.  
"I'm sorry, Mr .."  
"I'm a Gnomelette."  
"Mr. Gnomelette." Collet smiled.  
"Aw, no problem, hon!"  
"It reminds me of you." Shihna smirked at Zelos, who looked hurt and wanted a 'First Aid' of one of the girls.  
"Say, Mr. Gnomelette, could you perhaps let us through? We're here for something important." Collet asked the Gnomelette, going back onto her knees.  
"Hmmm .. Sorry, hon." the thing said. "I won't let you pass."  
"Why you REALLY little-!!" Zelos shoved his glove up.  
The gnomelette stuck it's tongue out at Zelos.  
"I won't let you pass .. NOW." he said and smirked. "But .. if you show me what 'spicy' means, I'll let you through."  
"Spicy? How to SHOW what spicy is?" Lloyd wondered.  
"Maybe give him a spicy dish!" Collet suggested.  
"That could work. What could we make?" Genius asked and everybody counted their recipe list down mentally.  
"Oh, how about Cabbage Rolls?" Collet suggested and smiled widely.  
"That's not spicy at all!" Lloyd threw in.  
"If you let Sis cook, yes-OW!" Genius rubbed his head where Refill had hit him.  
"Curry Rice!"  
They all agreed to cook curry rice for the gnomelette and checked their wingpacks if they had all the ingredients.  
"We're missing Red Satay .. and Onions." Lloyd sighed. "Where to get Red Satay except Sylvarant?"  
They all wondered and decided to check through several cities to get onions and search for the red satay.

Lloyd sighed relieved.  
He had managed to keep them off the seal for a while .. and only by coincidence.

Although, what to do to make them forget to form the pacts and leave the two worlds alone? But then again, if they didn't do ANYTHING against the system, both worlds were going to die because of the lack of mana and-  
_Bang_!

Lloyd grumbled and peeled himself off of the tree he just walked into.  
"Lloyd, you should watch out where you're going." Zelos smirked.  
"I think he finally managed a record of his own stupidness." Genius grinned and Lloyd growled at him.  
They used their rheairds to fly over to Flanoir and killed some penguin monster that attacked them. At the market of Flanoir they found some red satay.  
"Now we can cook for that Gnomelette!" Collet chirped happily. And tripped.  
Lloyd sighed and helped her up.  
"Well, then we'll form a pact with the earth-spirit first." he said.  
".. I heard that the ice-spirit, Celsius, is around Flanoir." Regal remembered.  
"Well, shall we go after Gnome or Celsius first?" Lloyd asked.  
"How about we go after Celsius first, since she's closer?" Refill suggested and they went over to the temple of ice, after getting some penguin gloves, which somebody told them they'd need for Celsius' Tear. Whatever that was.  
When they got to a big lake full of water close to the altar, they wondered how to get further ahead.  
"Lloyd" Refill said and smirked. "How about you use your wings to take each of us over there?"  
"Eh?" Lloyd flinched. "B-But Sensei, I don't have the wings very long .. and .. I don't know very much about how to fly with them .."  
"You managed rather well when you went after Rodyle." Refill countered.  
"Uh-T-that was .. an emergency situation." Lloyd said and loosened his collar. "How about we search for this .. this Celsius' Tear? It's supposed to freeze everything, right?"  
"Wow, Lloyd, you remembered something." Genius smirked.

They searched the cave for Celsius' Tear and finally found it.  
"Watch out, Lloyd!" Collet stopped Lloyd from taking it. "Remember what that guy told us about Celsius' Tear. He said that one couldn't just touch it."  
"You need some special gloves for that." Genius reminded him.  
"Mh?" Lloyd took out some penguingloves from his wingpack. "These?"  
"Yeah, exactly!"  
Lloyd took his right glove off and slipped the penguinglove on.  
It felt weird. It felt like he didn't wear it, but a protective layer of fluoresciding liquid was pouring over his hand. He grabbed the thin stem of the ice flower and broke it off. He didn't feel anything. Like the glove had grabbed some air. He hoped that the flower wouldn't melt or anything like that from the heat of his hand on the glove.  
They backtracked to the big lake.  
".. and now what?" Lloyd asked, who was still holding the flower.  
"Um .. how about you touch the water with it?" Collet suggested.  
Lloyd sighed, shrugged his shoulders and knelt down onto one knee. He touched the water with a piece of the petals and in a few seconds the whole lake was covered with a three inch thick layer of ice.  
"Wow .." Genius was stunned. They slipped and slid to the other side and stared at the four statues in front of them. They were obviously put their a while ealier.  
"Hmm .. they look new." Lloyd said, sounding like he was acting surprised. "Wonder who put them there? And why?"  
He smirked a tad and stopped his communicator from vibrating a few seconds later.  
Refill was busy looking at a slab in the corner.  
"The angle of view is the key .." she mumbled, reading the slab.  
They were all quiet, letting Refill and Genius think, since they were the cleverest in the group.  
"I think .. we need an angle of 59 degrees." Lloyd said to everybodies' surprise.  
"WHAT!?"  
"L-Lloyd .. a-a-are you feeling alright?" Genius asked. "Did that knock against the tree do something to you?"  
"Shut up!" Lloyd snapped at him and turned the statues around with Regal and Zelos, until they formed an angle of 59 degrees.  
The door rumbled and opened.  
And everybody stared at Lloyd.  
"How did you know that?" Refill asked.  
"Um .. I .. uh .." Lloyd stuttered, thinking of an excuse. "I .. I guessed."  
"Figures." Genius said. "Only thing that you get right except swordsmanship and art is when you guess."  
Lloyd gave him a hit on the head for that.

Celsius was standing at her altar, glareing at them. She looked over at Lloyd and smirked.  
"I am the spirit of everlasting cold, Celsius." she said calmly. "What do you want?"  
"I am Shihna and I wish to form a pact with you." Shihna said and Celsius laughed.  
"A pact? Well, let's see if you can handle my strength!"  
Celsius had her loyal wolfgod Fenrir by her side and he was a good protector. They first had to take care of Fenrir, before they could even get close enough to Celsius to strike her.  
They managed to bring her down and she threw her head back.  
"Very well. You are strong and I will give you my strength if you tell me your vow." she said.  
"I vow to change the system of the two worlds." Shihna promised and as a proof of the pact, she got the Saphire ring.  
They made their way slittering back over the ice, Lloyd trying to think up of a way to keep them from forming more pacts.  
And then he snapped his fingers and knew an answer. The idea would, true, only keep them from it for a short time, but any time was better than none.  
"Hey, Guys" he said when he joined them from the icy ground. "How about we rest for now at some place?"  
"What?" Refill asked.  
"You know, we've been wandering around on this cold continent for hours." Lloyd explained. "Maybe we should fly over to some warm place and rest for the day. Thaw and so."  
They all thought about it and agreed to fly over to Flanoir, since the Inn there was greatly heated because of the cold.

They were resting in their rooms in Flanoir and Lloyd was sitting on his bed, staring like mad at the communicator. He was waiting for a message - any message - from his father about what to do next. A soft tap on the door startled him and he shoved the communicator underneath his pillow when Refill entered.  
"You're still up?" she wondered a bit. "You should go to bed, Lloyd. Otherwise you won't be able to stand a chance against Gnome tomorrow."  
Lloyd nodded quickly. "Yes, Sensei."  
"Good Night, Lloyd." she said and closed the door after a following "G'night" from Lloyd.  
The teenager sighed and decided that sleep would be a good idea, even though he could no longer sleep, since his father wasn't sending him any messages anymore. Lloyd was in a phase where he was feeling so relaxed and his eyes so heavy that he felt like if he closed them, he'd fall through the sky until he hit the real realm of dreams and sleep. Then there was another soft tap. But not on the door. Lloyd bolted up straight and looked around confused. Then he saw the shadow floating at the window. He got up and turned the light on on his way to the window. The shadow was lighted and he recognized Kratos.  
Lloyd opened the window.  
"Dad" he whispered. "What are you doing here?"  
"Taking you away, of course." he said.  
"Where to?"  
"To Derris Quaran. And other places." Kratos answered him and beckoned him out.  
Lloyd frowned and there was another knock on the door. Lloyd quickly banged the window shut, Kratos flew upwards out of view and Collet entered.  
"Lloyd? You can't sleep?" Collet asked.  
Lloyd jumped a foot.

Was it that obvious? That he was unable to sleep anymore? Collet noticing it was probably very likely, since she couldn't herself for a long time, but Sensei shouldn't have noticed it. She only found out about Collet's inability to sleep much later. True, he himself hadn't noticed it until she confessed, but he hoped that nobody would find out about his whole angeltransformation. Sensei was definitely suspiscious towards him. More than before after he had revealed his wings to them. Although he didn't really wanted to do that.

"Lloyd?"  
"H-huh?" the teenager stammered.  
"You okay? You look pale. Are you coming down with something?" Collet asked worried.  
"Uh, no, nothing. Just .. rather hot in here!" Lloyd laughed and opened the window again. Collet still looked a bit worried and a voice shouted.  
"Collet! Go back to bed, you should rest!" It was Refill. "And Lloyd! You stop keeping her awake and go sleep yourself!!"  
Collet flinched and apologized to Lloyd, closing the door she tapped back towards her own room. Lloyd sighed and turned back towards the window, Kratos had appeared again.  
"Dad, I can't come along." Lloyd said. "If I go missing for a long time, and I don't think that we will be back in about an hour, Sensei is going to rip my head off when I'm back .. but first she would question the hell out of me."  
Running steps. And Lloyd's door banged open and shut again. Kratos flew off again.  
"Zelos!" The male Chosen beckoned Lloyd to be quiet. Lloyd wondered what the hell was wrong with this evening. Everybody kept coming to him, no chance of being alone!  
"Lloyd, buddy! Hunny! You've GOTTA hide me!" he flustered.  
"Huh? And why should I do that?"  
"Ultra Gorgeous Cool Beauty" Lloyd looked at him with huge eyes. "You know, Refill-sama, she found me sneaking into Shihna's room. And now she's after me! And NOT in a good way!"  
"Serve ya right." Lloyd said, shrugging his shoulders.  
"No!" Zelos hugged Lloyd in a help-seeking meassure. "Please, please, please! Hide me! You have no Idea how scary Refill-sama can be-"  
"Excuse me, I'm her worst student, who forgets his homework."  
"Oh, right." Zelos sighed. "Help meeee!"  
"No!" Lloyd snapped at him. "Go and hide somewhere else! Go to Regal, Refill would never expect you there!"  
Zelos looked at him, his eyes huge as soupbowls.  
"You're right! Thanks, Amigo!" Zelos gave him a pat on the shoulder and sneaked out of the room to sneak back into Regal's.  
Lloyd sighed annoyed.  
"Just put a decoy for them and they won't notice you're gone." Lloyd jumped a foot at his father's voice.  
"Huh? Oh, oh right." Lloyd hurried along the room, before somebody else decided to join him. He grabbed a second blanket from the cupboard, stuffed it underneath the blanket on the bed, arranged some manners and it looked like a rumpled up figure of Lloyd, completely covered underneath the blanket, sleeping.  
The teenager stepped onto the windowsill and jumped out, revealing his wings and following his father.

"Where are we going first?" he asked.  
"It depends. How far are they?" Kratos replied, asking about the group.  
"They formed a pact with Celsius. But not with Gnome yet."  
Kratos frowned and seemed to think a bit, floating in midair.  
"Then they'll go after Gnome first. Alright, we're off to Shadow's temple." he flew off, Lloyd flying close next to him.  
"Why to Shadow?"  
"You'll see."  
The rest of the way they flew silent and landed on a high cliff, south of Meltokyo. The temple was built halfway into the cliff. They entered.  
"Wah, it's so dark .." Lloyd noticed and stopped.  
"Wait a bit." Kratos said and rummaged through his wingpack. Blue light lit in his hand on a candle of the same color. The light kept growing and seemed to fill the whole temple with passable light now.  
"Wow .. what was that?" Lloyd asked.  
"A blue candle. You'll need one when they go after Shadow." Kratos answered. "One blue candle only works for about three hours in here."  
Lloyd grumbled and they walked through the silent temple, their steps echoing on the walls.  
"What are we doing here, anyway?"  
"We're going to do something that will keep them from forming the pact with Shadow too soon." Kratos said and they decended further down.  
They were finally in front of the altar.  
"Do you want to do the honors?" Kratos asked.  
"Huh?"  
"Do you want to cast the spell?"  
"Me? Do Magic? Of course, I'll do it!" Lloyd called out, getting excited. " .. but how?"  
Kratos smirked and got a sword out which was decorated with weird black and purple runes all over the blade.  
"Hold this. I'll assist you, since you can't really use magic on your own."  
"Why can' t I?"  
"Because you aren't of elven or half-elven blood." Kratos said.  
"But neither are you. Unless you kept that from me secret as well."  
"I don't have elven blood in my veins." Kratos said and gave Lloyd the sword.  
"Then how can you use magic?" Lloyd asked.  
"I'll tell you that later. Now, this spell will destroy Shadow-"  
"WHAT!?"  
Kratos calmed him down.  
"Not really. It'll just break him apart in several pieces." Kratos explained. "So, they will have to search the other pieces of Shadow, before forming a pact with him."  
"Ooooh." Lloyd said and nodded. He stepped up, holding the sword with both hands in front of him. "And what do I do now?"  
"Just stay like that and concentrate on breaking Shadow apart." Kratos said. He stepped behind the boy and put his hands as well on the hilt of the sword. "I'll speak the spell .."  
Lloyd nodded, closed his eyes and concentrated.

_Break Shadow apart .._

_Not into millions, but into enough pieces to keep anybody from forming a pact too soon .._

Kratos closed his eyes as well and muttered a spell underneath his breath. It sounded weird and one by one, the runes on the blade started to glow, a spellcircle formed underneath them. A loud rumble came from the altar and the spirit of darkness, Shadow, appeared, glowing weirdly until there was a burst of light - and it got dark again.  
Lloyd dared to open his eyes, since everything got silent, and looked around.  
".. Where's Shadow?" he asked. Kratos pointed down and Lloyd looked.  
There were five pieces of little hooded figure that just bobbed in place.  
"Come."  
Lloyd flinched and followed the seraph.  
"Don't we have to, like, hide them in some places? Won't it help them to form a pact with Shadow quicker, if all the pieces are at the altar?" Lloyd asked, not noticing consciously that he had started to call his friends 'them' as well.  
"No, they'll go and move about freely in the temple until they are done with Gnome and come here." Kratos answered. "And now, we will go to Derris Quaran, Yggdrasill wishes to speak to us. Mostly, you."  
Lloyd paled.  
"I'm not in trouble, am I?"  
"No."  
"Okay." Lloyd sighed and, once outside the temple, they revealed their wings again and flew to the high tower in the middle of Tethe'alla.

"Wait a minute, Lloyd."  
The teenager stopped in his tracks towards the room where Yggdrasill always was. "Hm?"  
"We need to change."  
"To .. change?" Lloyd asked.  
Two angels came in, each carrying a pack of clothes and one was handed to Kratos, the other one to Lloyd.  
"Change clothes .. just to see Yggdrasill?" Lloyd asked in disbelief.  
"Curtisy. Or so Yggdrasill says." Kratos said, shrugged his shoulders and took off his cloak. Lloyd sighed and started to change as well.  
Kratos' Cruxis outfit bore just a tiiiiiny resemblance to a bondage costume, seeing as it was covered with a lot of belts. Lloyd on the other hand had one that looked similiar from the texture and pattern like his father's outfit, but the blue parts were red, the white parts black. And he didn't have so many belts. Only around his arms, legs and two in a crosspattern over his chest.  
They entered Yggdrasill's room and bowed onto one knee.  
"Ah, Lloyd, Kratos. Good to see you. Especially you, Lloyd." Yggdrasill said and smirked a bit.  
"Kratos told me you were expecting to see me, .. Yggdrasill-sama." Lloyd said, still hesitating over the title for the Leader.  
"Yes, that is correct." Yggdrasill said and settled back in his throne. "I heard from Kratos that the Chosen and her group have gotten knowledge over the mana links and have started to form pacts with the summon spirits."  
Lloyd nodded.  
"That's true. Undine from Sylvarant and Volt from Tethe'alla appeared before them, shortly after the parallel pact was formed, telling them about the mana links." Lloyd told him and hesitated a moment and added with an apologetic sound. "They already formed a pact with Celsius."  
"And you have already gone to Shadow with Kratos and used a spell to prevent the immediate forming of the pact."  
Lloyd flinched and looked at Yggdrasill. How did he know!?  
"Y-yes."  
Yggdrasill stretched his hand out towards Lloyd, who flinched and took back a bit. The Leader put his hand over Lloyd's cheek and gave it a soft pat.  
"Good Work." Yggdrasill said and smiled. Then he turned. "You may leave."  
The two seraphim nodded and left.

"Is he a faggot, or what!?" Lloyd yelled, being back in Kratos' chambers. Lloyd as steaming around the big room. "I mean, what else could one think? He freaking touched me! What the heck!?"  
"Lloyd!" Kratos snapped and the teenager flinched, shutting up. "I can understand that you may be upset about it."  
"Well, 'upset' is the wrong word! I am freaking DISGUSTED!"  
Lloyd steamed around a bit more, but finally calmed down.  
"But how did he know that we went to Shadow?" Lloyd asked.  
"I'm being watched."  
"Huh?"  
"Yggdrasill has appointed Pronyma as my watcher. She watches me most of the time." Kratos said and Lloyd looked even more confused. "Suicidewatch."  
"WHAT!?"  
"Well, I did try to commit suicide after Anna was dead and I though I'd lost you as well." Kratos told him calmly. "But Y-"  
"Y?"  
"I got stopped. And since then Yggdrasill has kept Pronyma keeping tabs on me, so I don't do anything like that." Kratos said. "But why still after all these years? I mean, I've got my son back. I'm not suicidal anymore, anyway."  
Lloyd blushed a bit.  
He stepped over to Kratos, sitting on the latter's bed, and put his arms around him, resting his head on the seraph's.  
"I'm glad that we found each other again, Dad." Lloyd said and Kratos embraced him as well.

They were silent for a while and Lloyd got a random thought in his head.  
"How are you able to use magic?" he asked.  
Kratos hesitated for a moment and got something out of a shelf. It was a tube filled with a a liquid that was silvern and it glittered. Looking closer at it, there were fine streaks of blue mixed into it.  
"And that is ..?"  
"Aionis." Kratos said. "It's the legendary material, said to be fake. But there is a huge supply of it on Derris Quaran. Y- .. Mithos, I and a friend of ours, we took it and fused it with our blood shortly after the war. It made us immortal and it henced Mithos' and our friend's ability of using magic. I was given magic as well."  
Lloyd inspected the tube even more.  
"So, Aionis made you able to use magic?"  
"I just said that."  
"You fused it with your blood?"  
"Yes."  
Lloyd's eys sparkled.  
"Can I fuse some Aionis with my own blood as well?" he asked.  
Kratos flinched and looked surprised at him with his own, noncovered eye.  
"It would be SO COOL to use magic! Like Genis' best spells. Like, like .." Lloyd got really into it and struck a pose. " 'Show remorse for your deeds, suckers!' and then the spell would activate!"  
Kratos kept silent.  
Then he erupted.  
"Are you out of your mind, Lloyd Aurion!?"  
The teenager jumped three feet into the air and stared at the seraph.  
"Do you have any idea what Aionis could do to you!?" Kratos yelled at him. "This thing will change your whole body, and I don't just mean your bloodcirculation! This will change your whole way of thinking, it would change your whole personality! And immortality isn't that great!"  
Lloyd's eyes were bigger than soupbowls.  
Kratos cleared his throat and looked away embaressed.  
"I'm sorry." Kratos sighed.  
"No, I should've thought about the consequences of Aionis before losing my head over it." Lloyd said, rubbing his neck. "But why are you so against me using magic?"  
"I'm not against you using magic." Kratos said. "It's just that Aionis would make you immortal. You would be stuck in the body of a seventeen-year-old teenager, if you take it now, forever. And I don't want you to become so horrible of a person like I am."  
"You're not horrible!" Lloyd said. "You're great! I always looked up to you, even when I didn't know you were my dad! You're strong, you can keep a cool head all the time ... but you aren't happy being stuck in the body of a twenty-eight-year-old?"  
Kratos smirked.  
"Not really. Although it has it's advantages." he said and put the tube back onto the shelf. He stepped towards the door. "Come on, you should go back to the others or they'll find you out." and he left.  
Lloyd sighed and frowned. He looked around and then took the tube with the Aionis in it back out.

A legendary material. With horrible side-effects. Of course, Lloyd could understand that it had to be horrible for a person who should've died a long, long time ago to keep on living, like he was .. stuck in time. But on the other hand, Aionis had the ability to let people, even humans, use magic. If one would look at it from that point of view, it would be a great material.

"Lloyd! Hurry up!"  
The teenager flinched and, the tube hidden in his gloved hand, ran out of the chamber to the teleporter.  
"Weren't you going to show me how to teleport when I'm here again?" Lloyd asked.  
"Not today. When we have more time." Kratos said, smiled and ruffled Lloydy's hair a bit, before the teenager stepped onto the teleporter and vanished.

Lloyd's wings shot out and he flew towards Flanoir, floating a while over the Inn, trying to listen if anybody was moving close to his room or to a window to look out. When he heard no noise, just the calm breathing of sleeping people, he flew slowly to the window of his room and, taking his wings in, stepped slowly and quietly onto the floor.  
"Back already, Lloyd?"

**Cat-Alin: **Ehehe, sorry it took so long ..**  
Shihna: **And why did it take so long this time?**  
Cat-Alin: **I didn't quite know what to do for Gnome and Celsius. And a friend of mine gave me some critique on Kratos' Life the original, german version and I lost interest in it.**  
Shihna: **So you're going to drop the story?**  
Cat-Alin: **Hell no!**  
Shihna: **Rewrite it?**  
Cat-Alin:** Hell no, squared! I'd have to rewrite the whole damn story in english again! No, I'm gonna finish it like I wanted to and then I'll just .. do something. I dunno.**  
Shihna:** So bored with your life that you aren't interested in anything anymore?**  
Cat-Alin: **.. Yes. Now if my Mom would finally see SENSE, then she'd let me have my way and I'd get back interested in life.**  
Shihna: **Pff, yeah, through sex.**  
Cat-Alin: **Whatever you think is so bad about sex ..**  
Shihna: **Well, if you have grown up with a sexcrazed sociopath, maybe then you'd understand me!**  
Cat-Alin: **I do, I really do .. although you still have a soft spot for him.**  
Shihna: **.. EW!**  
Cat-Alin: **Holy camoly, my perverted thoughts are contagious! Yes!! Dear Readers, can I get a review, please?


	11. Confusion of character

**Cat-Alin: **Sorry for the delay.**  
Shihna: **You were just depressed, right ..?**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah, yeah, whatever.**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, neither Namco, nor the OVA. If she did, the flashback to Anna's death would've been much longer, better and one would've seen Baby Lloyd and Kratos wouldn't just stood there like a statue.

The teenager held his breath, didn't dare to move, only his eyes slowly looking around. The light went on. And Lloyd, in spite of himself, gasped.  
Everyone was there.  
Refill was sitting on the bed, her legs crossed, glareing at him. Regal and Presea were standing around the door, Genius and Collet were also on the bed, looking tired, Zelos and Shihna were leaning against the cupboard.  
Lloyd slowly straightened up.  
"Guys?" he asked, trying to play it off. "What's going on? Why are you all here?"  
"Cut the play, Lloyd." Refill snapped at him. "Where did you go off to?"  
"O-off to? I .. I don't know what you mean, Sensei."  
"I wanted to check if you went to bed, just when you were leaping out of the window and took off .. with your wings." Refill said. "Where did you go?"  
"Is that why you had your window open?" Collet asked. "So you could run away?"  
"Uh .." was all Lloyd could say.  
"Nice clothes, by the way." Refill said and Lloyd flinched.

He was still wearing the clothes he had on, when he had met Yggdrasill. Dammit! They had seen Kratos in a similiar outfit, they could count two and two. It's not very common that this sort of clothes was sold everywhere and buyable by everyone.

"They look like Kratos' .." Genius mumbled, trying to stay awake.  
Lloyd gulped and backed further off, the window behind him. They had him now. Not really, but it was obvious that a simple saying would take care of the matter.  
"Now, Lloyd" Refill said and crossed her arms as well. "Where did you go to? With Kratos, obviously."  
"Alright, I did go with Kratos!" Lloyd snapped, grabbing a sudden idea. "But I was just following him-"  
Collet frowned and picked the pillow up, having felt something hard underneath it.  
"What's that?" she wondered, picking up the communicator.  
"AH!" Lloyd yelled, dashed forwards and grabbed it from her.  
"Interesting device. Yes, Lloyd, tell us what it is."  
"It's .. it's private .." Lloyd mumbled, trying to think of a different use for the communicator.  
"Is it now?" Refill said. "I don't believe that. Show us."  
Lloyd growled and, pressing a button on the communicator, showed them.  
"There! It's a picture of my mom, satisfied!" he growled.  
Indeed, the display showed a picture of a woman with long brown hair, holding a big boquet of flowers in her arms. It was the same picture as the one Kratos had next to his bed.  
"That's your mom?" Zelos asked. Everybody was staring at the picture.  
"Yeah .."  
"What a hot chick!"  
Lloyd growled and wants to snap at Zelos, when the window behind them and half the wall broke and a figure got into the room.  
Kratos.  
He held something over Lloyd's mouth and nose, the teenager struggling, but he stopped rather soon and was unconscious.  
"Lloyd!" Collet called out worried.  
Kratos picked Lloyd up and glared at Zelos.  
"I'll bring him back, don't worry." Kratos said. "And Chosen, don't call my wife a hot chick, ever again. She's way out of your league."  
With that, he flew back out of the hole he had produced, everybody staring.

When the teenager woke up again, he saw the black-red ceiling and knew where he was. He sat up and looked around, his head still rather fuzzy.  
"Awake?" somebody asked, who was sitting next to the bed, reading a book.  
"Depends." Lloyd mumbled and held his head. "What did you drug me with?"  
Kratos showed a papertowel, still damp from the drug on it.  
"Chloroform." he said. "I thought that if it'd look like I 'kidnapped' you, they'd believe you weren't on my side at all."  
"Well, Sensei saw me leaving earlier on .. with you."  
"Hmm .." Kratos said. He slapped the book shut, making Lloyd feel much more awake, and stood up. "Come."  
"Where to?" Lloyd asked, getting up as well.  
"Training Grounds." Lloyd followed the seraph a few corridors along and into a wide open space that looked like a garden with nothing but flat grass and a big statue of Martel in the center.

"Take your wings out." Kratos said.  
"Mh?" Lloyd looked confused, but followed his father's order and took his blue wings out that were tinted with green. Kratos took his own diamond blue ones out.  
"First thing I'm going to teach you, is how to teleport with your wings out." the seraph said.  
"Uh .. sorry for the subjectchange, but .." Lloyd said. "Don't I have to hurry back?"  
"Why? They think you've been kidnapped by the enemy. It would only make them suspicious, if you return that shortly." Kratos said. "So, we've got time. I'll teach you how to teleport."  
"Yes!" Lloyd cheered.  
"First thing you've got to do for teleporting is focusing. Focus on the spot where you want to teleport to and spread your mana around your area."  
"Spread .. my mana?" Lloyd wondered.  
"I'll show you how it's done. Squint through your eyes, you should see my mana." Kratos said and closed his eyes in concentration.  
Lloyd closed his eyes to slits and just saw a thin layer of bloodred aura around his father. It grew brighter and enveloped the area around him and then - he vanished.  
The teenager looked around and saw Kratos in a corner of the garden. And Kratos teleported quickly back to Lloyd.  
"At first, teleporting may take a lot of energy from you, but once your body is used to it, it won't make any difference." Kratos said.  
"Alright .. but how do I spread my mana?" the boy asked.  
"Relax. Taking deep breaths should work. When you feel relaxed, try to concentrate on a part of this garden to teleport to." Kratos said and pointed to the statue. "Try to get to the edge of the Statue."  
Lloyd nodded and closed his eyes, trying to concentrate and relax at the same time.

He wasn't very good at concentrating. That was the one reason why he was such a bad student. Although focusing on one spot should be easier than trying to remember a load of dates, timelines and names of great people, except for the Hero Mithos. Over to the statue, just about a hundred meters away from him. Shouldn't be that hard.

Lloyd took a deep breath and exhaled, starting to relax, his mind set onto the statue. A slick feeling enveloped him, like slimy fish were rubbing against him while they were swimming, then he felt like he was torn apart and set back together.  
A strong wind blew him in the face.  
He opened his eyes.  
He was on top of the statue.  
"Not quite right, but still very good." Kratos called from the bottom of the statue. Lloyd blushed and flew down. "Maybe you were concentrating so hard on getting as close as possible to the statue that you got onto it. But you managed rather quickly to spread your mana."  
"It's a weird feeling." Lloyd said.  
"Well, once you mastered to teleport without your wings, the slimy feeling will vanish." Kratos calmed him down. "You should rest, it's hard at first-"  
"No, continue, I'm fine!" Lloyd said, looking hyper. "How do I teleport without wings?"  
"Um, that's a bit too early to talk about that." Kratos said, concered about his son's eagerness to learn more. "First you have to be able to teleport fast and to the correct spot with your wings out."  
"Okay!" the teenager looked around and pointed to a dent in the grass towards the left. "I'll go there." and closed his eyes again, ready to teleport.  
Two seconds later, he was close to the dent, but more on the upper part of it, than in the middle.  
Lloyd cursed loudly and teleported himself back to his father.  
"Ok, this time I'll make it." Lloyd said, eager.  
"Lloyd, wait-"  
But the boy vanished and appeared again a second later, this time right at the dent he wanted to get to. He grinned proudly.  
"I did it!" he cheered when Kratos joined him.  
"Yes, very good job." Kratos complimented him, but noticed the boy's paleness. "You should rest a bit now."  
"Just one more time!"  
And before Kratos could contradict anything, Lloyd concentrated again and was gone, back at the statue - and fell towards the floor.

His head was throbbing like mad and he felt sick to his stomach at the same time. The throbbing was at the side of his head and it felt rather wet. Was he bleeding? Something cool was lying on his forehead and he sighed, feeling a bit of the pain leaving him. He slowly opened his eyes and saw his father leaning over him.  
"Finally awake?" he asked, sounding worried but angry. "You hit your head on the corner of the statue on your last teleport."  
"Urgh .." Lloyd just said, closing his eyes again, the dim light of the chamber hurting his eyes.  
"I told you, you should rest. Teleporting takes a lot out of one at first. Overexcerting yourself is dangerous."  
Lloyd just moaned, crawling underneath the blanket, holding his stomach, the damp towel on his forehead slipped off.  
"You feel sick to your stomach, right?"  
"Mh .."  
"Well, it's just your body trying to get used to the 'tearing apart' through the teleporting." Kratos said and gently patted the bump on the blanket that was Lloyd's head. "Try to rest some more. You should feel fine after a while."  
The teenager heard the seraph leaving the room through the door that seperated his chambers from the latter's. Lloyd sighed and tried to ignore the throbbing from his head. Tried to relax and fall back into the kind darkness of sleep. Although he couldn't really sleep anymore.  
He finally fell into a half-sleep. Into a darkness that was soothing and pictures flew through his mind, black and white or colored.

When Lloyd opened his eyes again, he felt cooled off, a sheen of sweat all over his body, like he had just recovered from fever, and he sat up. He had no idea how much time had past, seeing as there was no real sky on Derris Quaran. He got up and went towards the bathroom next to his chamber, since Kratos had made them make one, seeing as Lloyd had not cheated his metabolism.  
When the teenager got out of the shower, dressed in nothing but a towel, and put back on his normal red clothes, that were still lying where he had left them earlier on, when he had had to go to Yggdrasill. Lloyd threw the other clothes, the ones he had called his Cruxis Clothes, onto his bed, when something caught his eye. A tiny tube with silvery shining liquid, streaked with blue, was lying half out of one of the pockets.  
He picked it up und recognized that it was the Aionis his father had shown him recently. He hadn't realized that he had taken it with.

On the one hand, he had to give it back, seeing as it was his father's posession. Then again, he could show it to Sensei and she'd go absolutely Ruin-Mode on it and would forget to question him about anything weird he would be doing. Torn between doing the right thing or doing the right thing for Cruxis and keeping his identity secret.

Lloyd sighed and put the Aionistube into his pocket. He'd decide later on what to do with it. The door opened and Kratos came in.  
"Feeling better?" he asked.  
"Yeah. Sort of like I got over fever, but fine."  
Kratos nodded and beckoned the boy to follow him.  
They went to one of the teleporters.  
"Uh, Dad, just wondering, how much time passed, since I passed out?" Lloyd asked, thinking what the others would say.  
"Long enough for them to have formed the pact with Gnome."  
"Uh-oh .." the boy sighed.  
"Don't worry. The Coresystem here is running on highest speed, I hope we'll have the answer to the manalink-breaking soon." Kratos calmed him down. "They're on their way to Shadow's Temple. Although, they won't be able to get far off, since it's pitchdark in there - not to forget that Shadow is in pieces."  
Lloyd nodded and stepped onto the teleporter.  
"I modified this teleporter, so it'll send you outside of Meltokyo." Kratos said and Lloyd nodded, the teleporter almost finished with loading the teleport.  
"See ya soon." Lloyd grinned and Kratos smirked.  
"Sorry, Lloyd .."  
Lloyd frowned and Kratos shot a high leveled spell at him. Next thing Lloyd noticed, was the pulling of the teleport, but the spell slashing his skin, clothes and hair around.  
The spell stopped, the teleport as well and Lloyd gasped for breath. There were cuts on his face, some even so deep they cut through his clothes.  
He staggered on closer to Meltokyo, hoping he'd find the others quickly, when everything turned black before his eyes and he fell to the ground.

"..bet he's working for them!"  
"Shut up, Zelos!"  
"Shhh!"  
Lloyd frowned, hearing snapping voices and felt somebody's presence close to him.  
"Guys, guys, he's waking up!"  
That was definitely Collet's voice. She was sitting next to Lloyd, who was lying in a bed. He sat up, holding his head, noticing a bandage around it, and growled.  
"Could you two haters finally shut up for once?" he snapped at Zelos and Shihna.  
"Well, he's got a change of heart." Genius noticed, seeing as Lloyd had never snapped at anyboyd to shut up .. except for people he hated.  
"Oh, Lloyd, we were so worried!" Collet said, flinging herself around Lloyd's neck. "We saw you outside of Meltokyo, injured very, _very_ badly and unconscious and .. we were so worried!" And she buried her head against his chest.  
"Lloyd, what happened?" Genius asked. Lloyd peeled Collet away from him and took the bandage off.  
"Kratos attacked me, is all." he said. He looked at Refill, who cleared her throat and looked at him earnestly.  
"Lloyd, I am sorry."  
".. Why?" the teenager asked, frowning.  
"Because I was suspiscious. You disappearing in the tower of salvation through Kratos, coming back so soon, uninjured .. I got suspiscious. But seeing how Kratos kidnapped you and how he injured you now .. I'm sorry."  
"No problem, Sensei .." Lloyd said, sort of relieved and happy that she would no longer keep a close eye on him.  
"I just want to know, what your reason was to follow Kratos yesterday." Refill admitted.  
"I went after him, because I wanted to ask for more pictures of my mom."  
Everybody seemed fine with that answer and didn't ask about the sudden clothes changing. (**AN:** In fact, the authoress just couldn't think of a reason ..)  
"Where were you guys heading for, anyway?" Lloyd asked.  
"We were on our way to Shadow's temple .. for the second time."  
"Second time? Did he kick your butts the first time around?"  
"No." Refill sighed. "We weren't able to walk in any further, since it was pitchdark in there. We asked for a blue candle in the elementary research institute here in Meltokyo and after some trouble, we got it."  
"Ah, ok .. Well" Lloyd said, threw the blanket off of him and jumped up. "I'm fine. Let's move it, we gotta form pacts!"  
Lloyd rummaged through his pocktes, looking for something. He had nothing in them except the tube of aionis.  
"Anybody know where my c-" he stopped.  
"Your what?"  
"My calculating watch is. You know, what Collet found underneath the pillow, the one with the picture of my mom."  
"Oh yes, that. You dropped it when Kratos kidnapped you." Refill said and took the device out of her pocket and gave it back to him. "Interesting runes around the display. Angel language, perhaps?"  
"Um, I guess so. Kratos gave it to me." Lloyd said, closing the latch and put his glove back on.  
"Hmmm ..?" Refill said, a hint of suspicion in her voice.  
"What is it?"  
"No, just wondering. Kratos gave it to you. Perhaps it's something of a communating device" she said and Lloyd flinched. "or like a sensor, so he'd be able to find you - and us - if he wants to."  
"Oh .. well, that's a good point .." Lloyd said slowly, trying to think of a reason to keep it. "It would be better to throw it away .. but .."  
"I know and understand." Refill said. "It has a picture of your mother. And I could be wrong with my idea of that thing. So, do with it what you like."

They were about to leave the Inn, when Lloyd held Refill back.  
"Sensei, there's something I'd like to talk about with you." he said and everybody looked at him. They were in the lobby and Lloyd mentioned the half-elf woman to come back into the room. Refill nodded and they went in, Zelos grinning.  
"Ah, I bet he's gonna confess his love he had all schoolyear long!" he grinned and a vase flew out of the closing door and hit him on the right cheek, while Shihna's hand got his left one.  
"What is it, Lloyd?" Refill asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.  
"Well .." Lloyd stuttered and thought if he should do it. He reached into his pocket and got a tiny little glass tube out. "This is-"  
"Aionis!" Refill exclaimed fascinated. "The silver, sparkling on it's own, even in darkness and the streakes of blue in it, like strings! Where did you get this?"  
"I .. I got it from Derris Quaran." Lloyd said, surprised that his teacher would recognize Aionis in no time. "But usually Aionis is in solid form, right?"  
"Yes and it's very, _very_ difficult to melt it! You need a Sacred Fire for it and - Why are you showing this to me?"  
"Um, I, I thought you'd be interested in it, since - you know - it's something you don't come across very often." Lloyd explained and put a little pause in. "I'm sure you'd be interested in it's effects."  
"Why, yes, I would be _very_ Interested! There are no real records of Aionis, it's supposed to be a fairy tale of a very rare stone." Refill said and seemed very happy and then looked concerned again. "Why are you telling this to me?"  
"Well .. I admit, I've been acting suspicious .. and I don't blame you at all for keeping a sharp eye on me all the time." Lloyd said and urged himself on to just say it. "I'll do it."  
"Do what?"  
"I'll be your test-subject for the effect of Aionis on the human body."  
"You'd .. do that? You'd put liquid Aionis in your body and let me keep records?"  
"Yes."  
Refill looked very happy, although she knew it was actually wrong to use her students like that. But Lloyd was agreeing and even determined to do it.  
"Very well .. then we'd best start immediately." Refill said and took a paper, writing down some details and information on how Lloyd was feeling, his skills - before and after his regaining of wings, strengths, weaknesses, etc, etc.  
She held an injection needle, the liquid Aionis in it.  
Lloyd was sitting on a chair and took his jacket half off, revealing one naked arm. He didn't flinch when the needle penetrated his skin, but felt weird when the Aionis was shot into his blood system.

It felt rather cold, but also warm at the same time. His arm was tingling and a sensation in his arm made it feel like there were tiny fish now swimming through his blood system. But otherwise, he felt the same before.

"How are you feeling?" Refill asked.  
"Not very different."  
"What does the Aionis in your blood feel like?" she asked, writing down on another piece of paper.  
So, Lloyd described her the feeling when Aionis mixed itself with his blood and the usual slight stiffness one feels when one gets a shot.  
Refill nodded.  
"Very well. So Aionis doesn't seem to have immediate effects on the body .. I'll need you to tell me exactly how you feel, the moment you feel different. Otherwise, if you don't feel any different in twelve hours, I'll question you again."  
Lloyd nodded and put his jacket back on, going out to the others again.

They boarded their rheairds, Collet having to be half-peeled off of Lloyd, since she was still very, very worried about his injuries, and landed on the cliff Lloyd had visited the night before. They entered and stood still in the pitchblack temple.  
So, indeed the blue candle Lloyd and Kratos had used the night before had already stopped it's own light.  
"Hmm .." Genius said, he having the suspiscious sound in his voice.  
"What?"  
"I dunno .. the mana here is very unstable .." he mumbled.  
"Sort of like it's only a fifth of it's strength." Refill agreed.  
"Well, standing here and wondering won't help, come on." Lloyd said, sighing and going ahead.

"What ..?"  
They all stared at the little hooded figure bobbing a little away from a crystal lamp. Lloyd put up a blank face, although he knew what it was.  
"Is that .. shadow?"  
"More like a piece of him .."  
Refill kneeled down and reached her hand out, it went completely through.  
"It went through .. and then .." she said and turned to the crystal lamp, going closer, the figure following her. "This lamp .. it must have a purpose .. it's so dark in here, even with the blue candle on, but it can't have the only purpose to be light .."  
"Oh, the little guy doesn't seem to like light very much." Collete noticed, the figure having stopped and seemed to hide behind Refill from the light.  
"So, seems like Shadow is broken in pieces and we'll need to gather them and bring them to the altar to form a pact."  
Everyone was surprised of Lloyd's quick solution. They agreed and looked for a way downwards, but a huge rectangular stoneblock was .. blocking the way.  
"So we'll need to find a detour .."  
They found one and after a while, they had managed to get three pieces of shadow, bobbing happily behind them.  
"This is a good place to gather them .." Refill noticed when they went down a slope and saw a wide, flat platform. "But they just won't stay!"  
Whenever one of them moved, the figures bobbed after them.  
"Then one of us has to stay here and watch them while the others are found." Lloyd said.  
"Then you do it."  
"What?"  
"Well, you had the good idea. Here, something to entertain them with!" Genius grinned and gave him a long plastic stick with a fluffball on the end of a string.  
".. Pull the other leg, Genius."  
"Ah, come on, it'll be fun!"  
Lloyd's expression darkened and he glared at Genius.  
"Better hurry along, or I'll strangle you with the string." he growled, the half-elf boy running after the others and Lloyd standing there, the three shadow figures running and snuggling to his legs, like they were attention seeking dogs.  
He sighed and sat down on the floor, absentlyminded swinging the fluffball on the string around, the hodded shadow figures going bananas on it.

What was wrong with him lately?  
Everyone of the group was starting to annoy him. Refill with her constant need for knowledge, Genius' boyish jokes, Collet's clingyness .. Shihna and Zelos fighting all the time was really starting to get lame and Regal's quietness made him uneasy.  
At least not as uneasy as Presea's blank eyes were. Sure, she had gotten some emotion in them since she got a keycrest on, but sometimes she just stared at Lloyd and he had the feeling that she was inside him, reading his mind, controlling his movement. Like she figured him out and knew the truth about him ..

"Tethe'alla to Lloyd, hello!" A finger poked against Lloyd's forehead.  
The teenager flinched, went into attack mode and tackled the person who had touched him, laying the string around it's neck and started to tighten, when he realized who it was.  
Genius!  
Instantly, he let go and back off, looked shocked.  
_What was wrong with him?_  
"S-sorry .. Genius .." Lloyd brought out, still shocked over what happened. The others were shocked as well, Refill got herself out of it and knelt down to Genius, who had taken the string from his throat and looked just as shocked as the others.  
"Sorry .. dunno what came over me .." Lloyd stuttered, knowing that there was no real apology or reason for his acting. "We .. we got them all? Then .. then, let's go."  
He went ahead, the shadow pieces, now completely five, following him. The others, after a slight hesitation, followed him as well, but in a slight distance. For one to not step into the shadow pieces all the time and the other because they were rather surprised, no, shocked at what had happened.  
Refill frowned and longed for a piece of paper and - most of all - an explanation.  
But nobody felt so weird like Lloyd.

What had happened?

The thought of having somebody touch him made him see red and attack, no matter what. Or maybe he had just reacted naturally .. but why would he attack _Genius_? He was his best friend! Ever since Genius and his sister had come to Iselia.  
So, .. WHY? That was the only thought Lloyd could really think: WHY had he attacked Genius? Why had he ATTACKED Genius? Why had he attacked GENIUS? IT MADE NO SENSE!  
Somebody else was touching him.

Lloyd flinched and backed off, looking down.  
Collet, who had tried to take his arm, had backed off a step as well, looking frightened.  
"L-Lloyd ..?" she asked, scared of course.  
Lloyd's breathing was faster and he tried to calm down.  
"Y-yeah ..?" He tried to calm down, ignoring the image in his head how he just wanted to grab Collet by the wrist and throw her down the next set of stairs.  
"A-are you okay ..?" she asked, sounding now worried. "Maybe you should've stayed in bed a bit longer. I mean, those injuries from Kratos were bad."  
"No, No, I'm fine. Maybe .. maybe just a bit over excited and tense about the whole pact-making. I mean, we're .. we're gonna change the worlds." Lloyd answered, trying to convince him that that was the reason. "I .. maybe that's why I'm a bit overreacting right now .."  
"Okay." Collet smiled and went along, all of them having stopped when they saw how Collet had gone over to Lloyd.

Down at the altar, the five shadow pieces stepped into each other and with a loud rumble and a burst of light, the elementary spirit of Darkness appeared, Shadow.  
"We need to make pacts with Sylph, Wind, and Ifrit, Fire, when we get to Sylvarant .. then Luna and-"  
"Asuka, yes." Shihna nodded. "But we need to find Asuka first. No idea how long that will take."  
"Yes, it's best we leave Luna and Asuka as last."  
While the two eldest women discussed this, Lloyd's gaze kept straying over to Shadow.

His heart beated fast. Wondering, what was wrong with him? Shadow didn't say much. He knew that from the book he studied in Derris Quaran. It's not like Shadow could tell them much.

Lloyd caught his breath.  
Shadow lifted an arm and his long, nail like finger, pointed at him.  
"_Yooooour .. faaaauuuult .._"  
"Ahhh!" Lloyd yelled, trembling like mad. "Shut up! Don't say that!"  
Everyone looked at Lloyd, who seemed to be shocked over something.  
Shadow's finger kept pointing at the teenager, who was shaking his head.  
"Shut up!"  
Lloyd backed off, lost his footing and .. everything went dark.

**Cat-Alin: **Holy .. I'm .. shivering .. I'm so excited!**  
Shihna: **Ya see? Now that was a nice plot twist, wasn't it?**  
Cat-Alin: **.. I .. I .. I LOVE THIS STORY! THIS IS GONNA BE ONE OF MY BEST!**  
Shihna: **Sure it will be. Dear Readers, sorry for the long wait, but we can be sure that Cat-Alin will be faster with updating now. Any reviews to this chapter?**  
Cat-Alin: **And Lloyd is really starting to get paranoid .. and the idea with the Aionis I had for a while now .. Oh God, I love this story!


	12. Thoughts of the Friends

**Cat-Alin: **Psyched as I am now, I'll continue with the next chapter immediately.**  
Shihna: **Great! Even though chapter 11 has only been out for ten minutes ..**  
Cat-Alin: **Ehehehehehehe .. -maniacal laugh-**  
Shihna: **Seriously, she's starting to scare me. Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, neither the Animation. If she did, Lloyd would've been as crazy as here.**  
Cat-Alin: **Viva la Evil-Lloyd! Your mother plays card games in HELL! Ahahahaha!

_Due to Lloyd's condition in this chapter, the view will be focused on the thoughts of the others._

"Shut up!" Lloyd yelled and he lost his footing, falling to the ground and lay there.  
".. Lloyd!" Collet screamed and knelt down to him. "Lloyd! Lloyd, say something!"  
The teenager stayed silent, his eyes closed.  
Collet trembled and started to shake the young man.

She had no idea what had scared him so much a few moments ago, but that didn't matter! What mattered, what was wrong with him now?  
He might be only unconscious, but he hit his head. He might have .. might have ..

"Lloyd!"  
Refill put a hand on Collet's shoulder and looked intensly at Lloyd.  
"Don't worry. He's just unconscious." she said and got up. "What we have to do right now, is to form a pact with Shadow."  
Everybody stopped being petrified and started to talk at once.  
"But Ojou-sama, not trying to offend you, shouldn't we make completely sure that Lloyd is alright first?"  
"The pact can wait a bit."  
"Yes, Lloyd needs a doctor. A severe fall could result into a crack in the skull."  
"I agree."  
"I know!" Refill said loudly, everybody shutting up. "I know that Lloyd is our big worry right now, but if we don't do anything, the worlds will continue to be under the control of Cruxis! Once we got the pact, I promise, that we will go to the nearest city and get a doctor!"  
"But, Nee-san!" Genius protested. "Lloyd needs a doctor _now_!"  
"Wait a minute, Shrimp," Zelos said and sneered. "didn't he try to kill you?"  
"He didn't!"  
"Well, he attacked you!"  
"He might have, but he sure didn't-"  
" 'mean it' ?" Zelos grinned. "Did you see his eyes? They were intent! If he hadn't gotten hold of himself so fast, you'd be the one on the floor, not in need of a doctor, but of a bodybag!"  
"Zelos, that's mean to say-"  
"But it's true and-"  
"Oh no, Lloyd will be fine, we just need to-"  
"SHUT UP!"  
Everybody stopped and stared at Refill.  
Her face was tomato red and she had her fists clenched, staring at the floor.  
"Right now .. we need to form the pact!" she snapped, her voice cracking up at the end. "If we don't, these worlds could end up to die. And then it won't matter if we help Lloyd at all!"  
They agreed in silence, but Collet shook her head.  
"I know that we may need to save the worlds, Sensei," she said and tears streamed down her face. "but I just can't fight right now! I can't concentrate on something like that! I'm too worried about Lloyd ..!"  
".. Very well. Collet, you can stay behind with Lloyd. We'll fight." Refill gave in and all of them faced Shadow, who had been swaying on the altar, not moving a muscle in his mist like body.  
Refill frowned.

Just _what_ had made Lloyd yell?  
What did he yell, actually ..? 'Shut up' .. 'Don't say it' .. was he remembering something, that was painful to him?  
Had he done something that was nagging at his soul? Or was he really starting to suffer from the pressure of saving the worlds .. or ..  
The Aionis! Perhaps the Aionis had made him see something that wasn't real and that had mocked him.  
Maybe it wasn't a good idea to fuse Aionis with Lloyd's blood. The result up to now wasn't very good.  
Attacking friends and halluzinations ..

The fight against Shadow was in full force and Collet had done her best to drag Lloyd from the fighting zone. She was sitting on the steps, Lloyd's head on her lap, and watched the fight.  
Refill was in the back, healing the others and once in a while using Photon on Shadow, since it was a light based attack. Regal and Presea were guarding her, attacking Shadow if he came to close, Shihna and Zelos were trying to keep him away from everyone, Genius in the back, using his strongest spells, but Shadow kept slipping to the ground and popping up somewhere else, so Shihna and Zelos were also trying to run after Shadow fast enough to catch him.  
"Hey, Lloyd." Collet tried to speak to Lloyd, trying to wake him up. "Everyone is fighting and they're doing great. It won't take much longer and the worlds will be saved. Then, I will have fulfilled my duty as the Chosen .. and .. maybe .. we could go back to Iselia. You hear me, Lloyd?"  
The teenager remained silent.  
"Argh!"  
Regal was blasted by Shadow's deformed hand into one of the pillars and remained in the dent that the impact had made.  
"Regal-san!"  
With one of the guards down, Presea was the only one protecting the two casters and finally, with a reassuring nod from Genius, she concentrated on keeping Refill safe, Genius helping her. But it didn't work out, since Genius got knocked out next. He had taken a blow that had been meant for Presea.  
"Collet!"  
The Chosen flinched and looked at Refill, who had her Staff in front of her, concentrating on a spell.  
"Use your angelic skill!"  
"B-But, Sensei .." Collet stuttered.  
"Please! We can't defeat him like this. I can't heal us while trying to do damage. Use any angelic skill you can think of!"  
Collet nodded and carefully got up and started to pray.

She had to concentrate. If her mind would slip wide enough, the spell would fail and who knew what would happen then! But what to use? Angel Feathers wasn't powerful enough .. and she didn't know her great spell Grand Cross yet .. Sacrificing herself with Reviverser wouldn't really help, either, they couldn't afford to lose more fighting strength. (**AN:** Reviverser is Sacrifice in japanese Version; Grand Cross is an angel skill Collet learns in the PS2 Version)  
Holy Song!  
_Please send us your great blessing .. and hear my prayer for we ..  
_Concentrate! But the image of how Lloyd yelled and fell crossed her mind again.  
_need your strength .._  
"Ue .." The unconscious teenager's hand twitched.  
"Lloyd!" Collet called out, but frowned hard and tried to concentrate again.  
_So send the heaven's Ray down to us .._  
Oh no, she confused two spells! But .. somehow it didn't seem that wrong to her ..  
"_HOLY JUDGEMENT!_"  
Pink butterflies swirled around each of them and healed the minor wounds, while strands of light hit around Shadow, the last three directly onto him.

"Thank you, Collet." Refill said, who looked exhausted.  
Shihna was vowing to Shadow and everyone else, except for Zelos who seemed to be watching Shihna, was around Collet and Lloyd.  
"If you hadn't healed us, we would've gone down." Genius said, who still had a deep gash on his left cheek.  
"And thank you, Genius, for taking that blow for me. It was very nice." Presea said to Genius, who went red and started to stutter.  
"It's really no big deal, guys." Collet said, embaressed of the sudden attention. "I was actually afraid of being too late, when I mixed the spells up."  
"What made you mix the spells up?" Shihna asked, who put the recently aquired Amethyst Ring into her wingpack.  
"I .. I heard Lloyd."  
"Huh?"  
"Well, he didn't really say anything, but he seemed to regain consciousness." Collet corrected herself and everyone looked at Lloyd.  
He was still out cold.

"Somebody get some rope!" Refill yelled, trying to hold a struggling Lloyd down.  
Collet flinched and nodded, running off.  
They were in Meltokyo again, in Zelos' house, since what was happening now would've been very weird in the Inn. But of course, nobody knew that this was going to happen.  
Lloyd was lying in the guest room's bed, resting. All was well until about a few minutes ago, Lloyd started to moan and toss around.  
It ended up with him screaming and struggling, like he was being tortured and wanted to free himself. At first, it was just a bit, like he was having a bad dream. But then, Zelos and Regal had to hold him down, but he fought them off and now Refill was trying to keep him down, her staff diagonally over his body.  
Zelos got himself up again and held Lloyd's legs.

Whatever was happening to his Bud, it was not good!  
And what a behavior that was, especially in front of the ladies! Of course, he could understand how he had wanted to down Genius, that Shrimp really was more than a brat sometimes. But struggling against Ultra Gorgeous Cool Beauty was just unforgiveable! Now, if she was trying to keep him down ..  
Zelos' thoughts went to completely private matters.

Lloyd, successfully tied up, was still struggling, but everyone had a chance to rest for a bit.  
"Why is he struggling so much?" Genius wondered.  
"This can't just be a mere nightmare he seems to be having." Shihna agreed, who was fanning herself with her cards. They all were ignoring Lloyd's screams.  
"What are you doing, Ojou-sama?" Zelos asked, who got away from his pornographical mindgame. Refill quickly finished the word.  
"Writing something."  
"Obviously. But what are you writing?"  
Refill didn't answer and put the paper away.  
Shihna looked over to the bed, Lloyd tossing around, the rope straining.

What was wrong with him ..? This couldn't be a nightmare or anything like that.  
And what had been happening at the altar? He was staring at Shadow .. and seemed to be shocked, like Shadow did something weird or that he was about to attack Lloyd. But why would he freak out so much?  
'Shut up' 'Don't say it' .. what had he meant with those words? Like he was hearing a painful truth ..  
But what exactly was a painful truth for him? He should actually be happy. He found his father.  
What could be torturing him?

"Damn ... you .."  
Refill frowned and looked over to the bed. The screams were still there, but everybody had found an occupation, Refill reading a book.  
Lloyd had his eyes open and turned his head towards Refill.  
"Guys, Lloyd's awake." she said and closed the book, everybody looking up.  
"Lloyd?" Collet asked and quickly tottered over to the bed, she had been tying braids. "Lloyd, you're awake!"  
She was about to fling herself relieved over his chest, when he head turned quickly over to her and he glared at her.  
"I'll kill you!"  
The girl stopped dead in her tracks and everybody stared even more.  
"Lloyd-kun, what are you saying to Angel here?" Zelos asked, clearly shocked at this inpoliteness.  
Lloyd clenched his teeth and sighed, falling back, like he was in severe pain.  
"You're right .. sorry .." he said and his hands moved, the wrists scratching with the rope. ".. What the heck ..? Somebody trying to do bondage with me?"  
"Oh, wait, I'll tie them off, Lloyd. You were struggling very much." Collet offered and stepped closer again, reaching for the rope ends.  
"Don't you dare touch me, you wench!"  
More stares.  
".. Lloyd having a split-personality?" Zelos guessed and Refill shook her head.  
"No idea what's wrong with him, but he's torn between his feelings I think." she sighed and spoke to Lloyd. "Mind if I free you?"  
Lloyd looked over at her and his eyes narrowed.  
"From your Mana-Aura I'd say you're a half-elf .. No, I don't care for half-elves."  
"What the he- .. Lloyd, what are you talking about?" Shihna snapped at him, pissed off of how he was suddenly so racist. The tied up teenager looked at her and his lips curled to a tiny smirk.  
"Why, hello there, Pretty Lady." he said in a _very_ different voice than he usually had, and he made a purring noise at her.  
The summoner turned bright red and pulled out one of her cards.  
"Wow, your .. your .. Ofudas, right?" Lloyd said, in his normal, excited and curious voice. "They're so cool, I'd love to know how you fight with them!"  
Shihna stopped in her movement of burning Lloyd up with her fire seal.  
Lloyd continued to babbel stuff that was differnt in character and emotion and his favorite seemed to be "Where the heck is that Bastard Mercenary?" and "Listen, Zelos, when I get my hands on you, I'm gonna give you an asswhooping. And NOT a pleasant one!"  
They all discussed what was to be done. There was no way that they could leave Lloyd like this. Neither in his emotional state, nor tied up forever. The latter being good since he could be attacking them.  
"No way around it," Refill sighed and looked at Zelos. "he needs to get knocked out again. Maybe then he'll calm down next time he wakes up."  
"Leave it to me, Ojou-sama!" Zelos singsanged and cracked his knuckles.  
"You know, you guys," Lloyd called out. "I can totally hear what you're saying. And if you think I'm gonna let you knock me out, well, THINK AGAIN!" and with the last part, he strained his muscles and tore his left arm free from the rope.  
"Oh no!" Collet gasped, not knowing _half_ the trouble they were in soon.  
"Zelos, quick, knock him out!"  
"Okay!"  
The door got opened and steps came closer.  
"Move aside." a calm voice stated.  
They turned around, Lloyd so started by the door opening that he didn't move, and saw Kratos.  
The angel went quietly through the gap of the group and stopped at the edge of the bed, glareing at the boy.  
The younger one looked dazzled at Kratos for a moment and then .. he broke down into tears.  
"Dad .. it's my fault .." he wept, ignoring everybody else.  
Zelos' chin fell a huge distance, seeing a guy cry.  
Refill was muttering "So in this condition he doesn't recognize anybody, but family .. interesting, interesting .." and scribbled on her papers.  
"Lloyd .." Collet mumbled and stepped a step closer. "what's your fau-"  
"Get away, wench!" Lloyd yelled, glareing at her like Kratos had glared at him a few seconds before. "You're such a nuisance!"  
"Lloyd, how can you say that to Collet? She's your best f-" Genius started, but Kratos spread his arm out and stopped him.  
"Speak." he demanded and Lloyd hung his head down.  
"All my fault .. everything .. he said so .. and it's true .. and I should never have taken it .. and .." his rant kept on coming, getting more bizzare and random, tears coming again.  
Kratos placed his hand on Lloyd's forehead and mumbled something, Lloyd's eyes widened for a second and then closing fully, his muscles relaxing. The seraphim ran his hand through Lloyd's hair gently and used a little wind spell to cut the ropes and took him up on his arms.  
"W-wait a minute!" Collet stuttered. "A-are you taking him away? Again?"  
Kratos stopped and looked over his shoulder.  
"I have to take care of his wounds. I'll bring him back, when he's fine."  
".. Please tell me .. us, when he has gotten better." Refill asked him and Kratos nodded, going through the door and down the stairs.  
"W-wait!" the half-elf boy thundered down the steps halfway, a short distance to Kratos.  
"What?"  
"When .. when Lloyd's awake again, tell him .." he muttered. "tell him that I don't feel a grudge against him, for what he's done .. could you do that?"  
".. Of course." Kratos said and once outside of the maison, he spread his wings out and flew to the Tower of Salvation, speaking gentle and calming words to Lloyd, as if to wake him up gently.

Kratos buttoned up the last one and took the still sleeping, or rather, unconscious boy from his lap and lay him in the bed, covering him up and tucking him in, like he had done several years ago.  
He watched his son, who's breathing was shallow and steady. Kratos had already healed the scratches and raw flesh that the ropes had done, frowning at what had gone on.

He had watched over him of course, making sure that Lloyd was fine.  
He seemed to be it at the entering of Shadow's Temple, but what had happened a few moments later .. Lloyd attacking his comrade, and not only his comrade, but his best friend .. Kratos had no idea what had made Lloyd gone so crazy at the altar, yelling.  
And his constant mumbling and screams had confused him even more. Perhaps he was driven by guilt of his two-ways with the group and Cruxis. Wanting to save the worlds, but wanting to save the Chosen. And also wanting to keep his father and himself safe from Yggdrasill .. understandable that he would feel stressed, but it didn't seem like the right explanation.

"I'm sorry, Lloyd," Kratos said quietly, stroking through his son's hair. "It seems that my presence in your life is bad .."  
Lloyd didn't answer, just lay there in the bed and kept his eyes close.

**Cat-Alin: **Okay, rather short the chapter right now .. sorry about that.**  
Shihna: **And your imagination for this chapter was even crazier before.**  
Cat-Alin: **Uh, yeah, .. comes from not being able to sleep in the night until about 1 or 2 in the morning ..**  
Shihna: **Well, it comes from-**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah, yeah, me not going out and getting enough fresh air! I know! I've heard it about seventhousand times now!**  
Shihna: **Well, take a walk around the block before going to bed next time. Reviews, please? And sorry if the chapter really did seem crazy.**  
Cat-Alin: **I liked the part Lloyd was purring at you! Yay, Shihloyd!**  
Shihna: **.. whatever.


	13. Fever and Transformation

**Cat-Alin: **Hmm, no commentary on how Lloyd was tied up half of the chapter. Does that mean you guys are used to me tying guys up? Not that I do it often ..**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn own Namco, nor Tales of Symphonia, nor the Animation. If she did, there would've been more Kratos Screentime.  
**Cat-Alin: **AND I MADE A MISTAKE!!**  
Shihna: **What?**  
Cat-Alin: **I just checked .. I forgot the whole part with the otherwordly gate .. I thought it was AFTER Shadow .. argh, comes from not playing ToS for a while .. damn Radiant Mythology. Sorry for the mistake and the big gap that's actually in the story .. I'll try my best to fill it!

The seraphim looked at his son, waiting for some sign that he was starting to regain consciousness but the boy only slept.  
Kratos frowned, remember what Genius had said.

'What Lloyd had done' .. of course, he knew that Lloyd had attacked his friend .. strangled him.  
But luckily, only for a few seconds .. but Lloyd had looked so serious .. so .. beserk, while doing it.  
Like a wild animal was inside of Lloyd and had finally forced it's way outside. What was going on with his son?  
Perhaps .. perhaps it was the angel transformation.

Kratos stroked some strands of hair out of Lloyd's face.  
"You're a half-angel .. perhaps I shouldn't have forced the transformation." he sighed. "Your wings would've revealed themselves through time .. and your senses would've gotten better. Even if I hadn't interfered."  
"Mh .." Lloyd grumbled and turned around, using his left hand as a pillow.  
Kratos smiled and left the chamber with fast steps.  
"You!"  
The angel flinched and bowed to the seraphim. "Yes?"  
"I want you to watch over the boy in these chambers. Report to me, when he has awakened."  
The angel bowed and stood itself next to the door, while Kratos headed for the teleporter.

"Haaah? Kratos?"  
The angel stopped and turned around, seeing the bright firey head of the Chosen of Tethe'alla .. in Sylvarant.  
Zelos signaled something and the rest of the group followed him close to Kratos.  
"How's Buddy?"  
"Pardon?" Kratos asked, thinking what Zelos was asking.  
"How's Lloyd doing?"  
"Is he alright? Is he hurt?" Collet asked, her eyes growing bigger with every word, filled with worry.  
"He didn't wake up." Kratos answered, realizing how that sounded. "Yet."  
"And where is he now?"  
"Derris Quaran."  
"And he's fine there?" Refill asked, growing suspiscious again. "All alone, in a weakened condition?"  
"I ordered some lowly angels to watch over him. And they know they'd better follow my orders .." he added in a dangerous tone. Which indicated that, if something was going to happen to Lloyd, those angels would be in deeper creek without paddles than they could imagine.  
"Genius, I have a question." Kratos said, looking at the blue eyes of the half-elf.  
"Y-yes?"  
"You and Collet, and Refill-san, have known Lloyd a long time, so you should know. What's his favorite dish?"  
Refill was a bit surprised that Kratos didn't know that. He was his father after all. But it was understandable that he didn't know it. Those two haven't seen each other for almost fifteen years.  
"Mmh .." Genius thought. "Well, actually, Lloyd eats everything."  
"Except for tomatoes." Refill added.  
Kratos couldn't help it and smirked a bit. His son had the same dislike in taste as he did.  
"But he does like to eat meat .. but why is that so important?"  
"He's probably going to be hungry when he wakes up." Kratos answered, with a shoulder shrug. "So, better get something now."  
Kratos set off after a tiny word of goodbye, flying over to every city he could find and getting several foods that he thought would get Lloyd's appetite.

_"It's your fault .."  
_Shut up!  
_Collet looked at him, her bright blue eyes moist. Her mouth covered by her hands.  
"You mean .. you .. lied to us?"  
_I didn't! I swear I didn't!  
_"Pretending to help us save the worlds, while being in contact with our enemy, I'd call that lying!" Refill spat at him, her arms crossed in front of her chest.  
_I didn't want to lie! It's just that I-  
_"Be quiet!!" Both of the women yelled that and Collet turned away disgusted.  
"And I thought we could trust you!"_  
You can .. Let me .. explain ..  
Too hot .. it was getting so hot, wherever he was.  
His shirt was clinging to him, it was too small and choked him .. his breath was going faster, gasping for air, starting to panic. He needed help or else he'll ..!  
_Collet looked at him again, doubtful, but the usual worried look in her eyes.  
_Collet .. help me, please ..  
_"I .. I hate you, Lloyd!" she yelled and started to scream when several decaying hands grabbed her by the hands and legs, pulling her down into the earth. "Lloyd ..!"_  
Collet ..! He .. he needed to save her! Needed to reach her!  
C .. Co .. C-

"_COLLET!!_" the boy shot up, his arm extended in front of him, grasping air.  
He was covered with a sheen of sweat, the blanket was halfway on the floor and his hair more toussled than ever.  
He sighed and tried to relax, his hand over his eyes, when the door opened.  
"Lloyd-sama? Kratos-dono wanted me to give yo-"  
Lloyd flinched, not counting on another one's presence and glared.  
"Stay away!!" he yelled, instinctively extending his hand over to that direction.  
He felt a burst of hot air from his hand and watched in horror how the angel got thrown back against the wall and the body pressed into it, like a pressure was on him, and the body finally giving in.  
The teenager stared at the bloody mess on the floor, then at his hand, which looked normal to him.  
He put his head on his knees and shivered terribly, wanting it all to stop.  
To wake up and realize that he was in his old bed at the dwarf's place.  
Dirk calling to him that he was late again for school.  
That the whole journey of worldregeneration never happened!  
"Lloyd-sama?" another angel entered and stared at the mess and the causer of the mess. "Wha-"  
Lloyd stared at the new angel and it had the same face as the recenly deceased one, like it came back to haunt and moch him. Make him feel guitly about what had happened. Which he was.  
"Don't .. look .." Lloyd mumbled, trembling even harder and looked just plain scared. "Don't look!!"

Kratos entered his own chambers, putting the two big paper bags full of food on the bed and sighed. Going to every city in Sylvarant and Tethe'alla to get any kind of food he could find wasn't something he usually did.  
He stepped towards the doors that were seperating his and Lloyd's chambers from each other and frowned, when no angel was there to watch. He went in and stopped dead in his tracks.  
The two angels that were supposed to watch over Lloyd and tell the seraphim when he had awaken were on the floor, both just a crumpled lump of blood, flesh and feathers.  
And on the bed, a tiny, pitiful little rolled up lump of person in a red pyjama was Lloyd, trembling so hard that the bed shook.  
"Lloyd ..?"  
"Who-!?" Lloyd yelled, rolling over and throwing something.  
Kratos formed the barrier around him in time and the vase bounced off and crashed on the floor. Both, son and father, looked at each other in horror. The teenager rather from what had happened and that he had almost hurt his father, Kratos more shocked on what he'd seen.  
Lloyd seemed to lose completely control. The corner of his mouth dropped down, his chin wobbled, his teeth were clenched.  
Kratos held a finger and stepped outside for a moment, grabbing the first angel he got.  
"I want some angels in Lloyd's chambers, cleaning up. And no word of this to Yggdrasill!" he hissed, the angel nodded and the seraphim quickly hurried back to his son, sitting on the bed.  
The second Kratos was on the bed, Lloyd flung himself on him and just cried, Kratos holding him tight, like the boy was about to split in two.  
"It's my fault!" Lloyd yelled between heavy sobs and sniffs. "They just came and I didn't expect anybody and I don't know what happened and they just died and were lying there and I got scared and-"  
"It's okay!" Kratos said in a hard voice, his hand running a bit through Lloyd's hair. "You don't need to explain _anything_."

Lloyd had finally started to calm down a bit and he felt like he had drained himself out. Kratos gave him a pat on the back.  
"Take a hot bath." he said. "And relax."  
Lloyd nodded and slowly broke off the hug and tapped over to the bathroom, his head hanging low.

He turned the handles, blue and red, and held his hand underneath the strong stream and frowned.  
He turned the hot-red handle even more and waited for the water to get hotter.  
Still nothing.

So he had finally lost his sense of feeling. How weird. He had still been able to feel his father's warmth in the embrace and how his hand was running through his hair.  
Although, now that he thought about it, it felt like it had stopped towards the end.  
Why hadn't he noticed that? Perhaps he thought that his father had stopped the hair-caressing.  
And .. when would he lose his voice. If at all? He wasn't supposed to become a soulless being. Unless Yggdrasill was trying to make him into a marionette.  
Wasn't he that already, actually? Doing his bidding .. although he had managed to keep Collet as far away as possible ..

He sighed and just let the tub fill and started to undress.  
Got in and turned the water off, absentlyminded staring at the foam covering most of the water surface.

There was acutally no way of escaping Cruxis.  
His father had proven it. He had tried to run away, ran into his mother. They had rough, but most likely happy years, but in the end .. Cruxis had cornered them, his mother had died. And his father was back in their league, as the seraphim he had been beforehand.  
And now he got caught up as well.  
Caught.  
Forever.  
In the organization he had thought was holy .. and found out that it was just a phase, all done to resurrect one person.  
What about the hundreds of Chosen that had been going on their journey of worldregeneration and got killed, because they hadn't matched Martel's Mana-signature!? What was the meaning? Hundreds or possibly thousands of victims, just to resurrect one person!? If Martel was really that great as the history books and legends said she was, would she want to come back to life, although her path would be plastered with corpses?

"Lloyd!"  
The teenager jumped out of his thoughts. Kratos was knocking on the door and, after receiving no answer, he opened it and came in.  
Looked at his son.  
"You've been in here for an hour and haven't done anything?" he seemed to notice and sighed. "And your hair would need washing as well .."  
"Mh .." Lloyd looked back onto the foam.  
Kratos smirked a bit and took off his gauntlets and sat on the edge of the tub, filling a plastic basin with water, splashing it on Lloyd's head.  
"Dad ..?"  
"Mhm?" The seraphim squirted some shampoo onto Lloyd's head and washed his hair.  
".. I can't feel anything anymore." the boy said, regretting that he couldn't even feel how his father was running his hands through his hair quickly.  
"So your transformation is almost complete."  
"Mh ... am I going to lose my voice?"  
Kratos frowned, rinsed Lloyd's hair with another splash from the plastic basin and repeated the shampoo part.  
"Why should you?"  
"It's part of the angel transformation, isn't it?"  
".. It is. But I don't think that you will lose your voice."  
"Why not?"  
"It's actually so, that the Chosen is the only one who'd lose her voice. The Chosen's supposed to become the vessel of Martel." he explained. "Besides, all the angels you see here have their voices."  
"True .."  
Kratos looked at his son, latter's head hanging low, and started to worry about him

Perhaps it would be better for him to choose which side to be on. Of course, he'd choose the side of the Chosen .. and they would become enemies again. Even if he would be seperated from his son again, he'd have to accept it. He had forced him into Cruxis.

"Genius wanted me to tell you something." the seraphim remembered and Lloyd flinched at his' friend's name. "He's not angry or holding any kind of grudge against you for what happened."  
Lloyd took his hands from out of the water and stared at them, the fingertips were already wrinkly from the water and he snorted.  
"Yeah .. I attacked .. and almost killed him."  
"He's not angry. He may not understand why you did it, but he forgives you." Kratos said, rinsing Lloyd's hair again, the suds from the shampoo running down Lloyd's shoulders into the water, making it even foamier. "You've got a very good friend."  
Lloyd was quiet, but bit his lip.  
"A good friend .. but what a friend am I, wanting to kill him?" he said finally.  
Kratos frowned, not knowing what to reply. Lloyd stared at the foamy water surface and finally lowered his head, until it was completely underwater.  
He wanted to stay underneath, but got pulled up after a few seconds, rather roughly.  
"Lloyd, have you gone crazy??" Kratos asked, worry and anger in his voice.  
"I must be!" Lloyd yelled at him, staring into his eyes. "I wanted to kill him! That wasn't any reflex I had at that moment, even if he startled me. I seriously wanted to kill him! Wanted to see his mouth gasp for air while I tied the string even tighter and see how the light left his eyes!! What kind of friend does that!? I am a piece of shit for trying that!"  
Kratos stared at him in surprise and sighed after a while.  
"It's probably just anxious. You're confused because you don't know if your loyalty is with Cruxis or your friends." he finally said and put a small towel on Lloyd's head. "Get dry." and he left.

Lloyd finished rubbing his hair dry and stared around the bathroom, only wearing some underpants. He couldn't wear his pyjama anymore since it was in need of a wash, the clothes Dirk had made him weren't very comfortable anymore and he wasn't going to put his Cruxis Clothes on again.  
Then he saw a pair of very dark blue, almost black, pyjamas on the floor.  
He put them on.  
They were a bit too big for him. But they smelled rather familiar. They probably belonged to his father.  
Lloyd left the bedroom and saw Kratos still in the room, looking at him.  
"A bit too big." he smirked. "But you're still growing."  
Lloyd nodded a bit, he still felt so drained, and sat back down on the bed.  
"Here."  
The seraphim held a bowl full with what looked liked clumpy cream puff.  
"Dad, you know that I can't eat anything anymore." Lloyd said, but took the bowl from him. "Was is this, anyway?"  
"Grated radish with crushed ice cubes and honey." Kratos said and sat down on a chair he pulled over to the bed. "And even if you don't feel hungry, you should eat something. Otherwise you'll never get strong enough again."  
Lloyd sighed and resigned, eating a few spoon fulls of it.  
It slipped very easily down his throat and although he couldn't taste anymore, he thought that it'd probably taste very sweet and cool, thanks to the honey and the ice cubes.  
After the few spoon fulls, he sighed.  
"Dad, really, I can't eat anymore." he explained and Kratos shook his head and took the spoon from him.  
"Come on, open up."  
"Dad, seriously .."  
"If you don't eat, I'll force feed you." Kratos said and he was serious.  
Lloyd resigned. He felt too tired and weak that he didn't care. So he let Kratos feed him, like he was still a one year old.  
About halfway through the bowl, Kratos let him be and told him to better sleep. Sleep and good food was the base for relaxing and regaining strength.  
And Lloyd lay back down in the bed, realizing that the sheets had been changed, and closed his eyes. It was ridiculous. He was an angel, to about 75 percent now, and couldn't sleep anymore!  
Kratos got up and wanted to leave, when Lloyd grabbed his cloak.  
"Dad," he mumbled. "since you've already treaten me like a child most of the day, why not tell me a good-night-story?" It was, of course, a joke. But only a bit. He didn't want some stories like the girl with the wine and cake or the girl that needed so much beauty-sleep, that she was practically a ghost when she woke up.  
Kratos smirked and sat back down. "What do you want to hear?"  
"Hmm .." Lloyd thought and put his head on his father's lap. "Tell me about mom. I don't remember anything about her."  
Kratos smiled and put a hand on the boy's head and thought about where to start.  
And while Kratos told him about how his mother was, Lloyd felt like he could sense the warmth of his father and could see his mother in front of him, the smiling face, like on the picture Kratos had shown him.

Next time Lloyd opened his eyes, he was alone and it seemed unusally dark and he felt like he was soaking in magma.  
He sat up slowly, holding his head. He had really slept for a while, it seemed. And, yes, he had more nightmares where Collet was being dragged down into the earth and the others ones mocking him and telling him how it was his fault .. but not as many as before.  
Lloyd wanted to go drink some water, his throat felt dry as sandpaper, and threw the blanket off.  
And gasped.  
Black, swirly snakes were wrapping themselves around his ankles, and the biggest one growed upwards, defying gravity, until it was about the height of Lloyd's eyes. And it grew it's own eyes, big white ones, without a pupil and a slit opened beneath them and grined.  
_Surprised ..?_  
What else could he be?  
_You're weak.  
_Perhaps.  
_Not perhaps. You are. You keep changing your side, until one of your trusted ones gets killed._  
He wouldn't let them be killed!  
_Then why are you not with them?  
_Because .. of his .. father .. maybe ..?  
_Your family is important to you?  
_Of course!  
_Even more imporant than your friends?_  
How could Lloyd answer to that? The grin of the slit grew even wider and it showed tiny, pointed teeth, glittering purpleish. Probably poisonous.  
_Look below .._  
He looked.  
The swirly snakes were crawling up his legs now, tying them together. And new ones sprouted everywhere out of them and crawled higher and higher.  
_You .. DIE!!_  
The grinning slit grew wider and jumped at him, biting his neck.

"Ahh!!"  
Lloyd bolted up, a few washcloth falling on his lap.  
His vision was a bit blurred and he felt dizzy and hot.  
"Lloyd?" a comforting hand touched his back. He felt it. But how? "Sorry for waking you."  
Lloyd turned around quickly, seeing Kratos and realized, what a mistake the quick movement was.  
A surge in his stomach climbed up his throat and he threw a hand over his mouth. Just in time, Kratos quickly handed him the basin from before and Lloyd releaved his stomach in it.  
Several minutes he threw up in it, clenching his hands on the rim, trying to get tiny breaks where he could get some air. When his stomach finally seemed to be empty from everything, Lloyd leaned his head on the rim, panting. Kratos gave him a fresh, wet, washcloth and Lloyd wiped his mouth, coughing.  
"Better now?" Kratos asked, taking the basin and left for a few seconds to empty it.  
Lloyd didn't know if he felt better now after throwing up or worse. He tugged at the blanket, it seemed to heavy - like it was made from steel, and stared at his ankles. No black swirly snakes or anything like that around him.  
He got up and sat back down, trying to get the room to stop spinning. When the spinning stopped to a certain degree, he got slowly back up and tapsed over to the bathroom, longing for water to wash his mouth out.  
Kratos was putting the now cleaned basin on the floor, when Lloyd staggered in and grabbed a cup from a cupboard, filling it with water and letting it drip into his mouth and out again.  
When his mouth felt not that sour anymore, he sighed.  
"Better lie back down, or you'll hit your head on the floor." Kratos said and half-way guided Lloyd back to the bed.  
"What the heck is wrong with me?" he wondered, even his voice sounding weak.  
"Fever."  
"I'm an angel - almost - shouldn't I be immune to this stuff?"  
"Apparently not." Kratos said and showed him the thermometer, in case he wouldn't belive it. 39.9 degree Celsius.  
Lloyd thougth it over and it seemed to make sense. He did feel rather hot and weak, and his vision was blurry. And he was sweating a lot, he should probably change again.  
Like Kratos had read his thoughts, he handed him his Cruxis Clothes.  
"No way."  
"Yes way." Kratos countered. "They're not only the only ones you have, but they are snuggly, warm and very comfortable, especially if you're trying to sleep."  
Lloyd was so surprised that Kratos had used the word 'snuggly', that he changed without really thinking about it.  
And he felt really much warmer when he had the black-red clothes on. He lay down in bed and then sat back up again, the pillow behind his back.  
"I can't sleep anymore." he said, although he was afraid of sleeping. When he slept, he'd just have more nightmares.  
"So you're just going to sit here, thinking how miserable you feel?" Kratos asked.  
Lloyd sighed.  
"No .. No." he mumbled and looked around the room. And then looked at his father. "Read me a book with angel language? So I learn more?"  
Kratos looked surprised, Lloyd wanting to learn out of his free will was something very different. He got up and took a book from one of the shelves and sat back down, reading it out loud, while Lloyd was sitting there, listening with his eyes closed and trying to remember any new word he didn't understand.

"Perfect." Kratos praised his son.  
Lloyd had just repeated every new word he had heard and got them all right.  
If Refill would've heard it, she would've cried tears of joy.  
Lloyd smiled. He was starting to be happy about learning new things. And he liked it especially, when his father was praising him.  
He noticed a sphere like orb in the corner.  
"What's that?"  
"The device I used to keep watch over you."  
"It shows what they're doing?" Lloyd asked, referring to the group.  
"Yes."  
Lloyd looked restless and curious. He would love to know what they were doing.  
Kratos smiled, got up and pushed the sphere orb closer, activating it.

The group was resting in Palmacosta's Inn, Refill was standing in front of the door, trying to calm everyone done. Shihna was upset about everybody sleeping in one room, because of 'the danger', which meant Zelos.  
"Quiet now!!" Refill yelled and cleared her throat when it was finally quiet. "Not more long, guys. And then the worlds will be save from Cruxis."  
"You say 'not more long', but we're still not very close." Shihna threw in. "We don't know where that 'Linka Tree' is. Or Asuka, for that matter."  
"No worries. We heard that Nova's supposed to be close to the Hakonesia Pass for a few days. So, we rest and fly over, hearing what he can tell us. He is a zoologist, he should know .. maybe. And he travelled a lot."  
"And if we find the tree, how to find Asuka?"  
"Well .."  
"I'm sure, when we find the Linka Tree, we'll know what to do!" Collet cheered everyone on.

Lloyd sighed. It was nice hearing everyone's voices again, but he felt guilty inside.  
Kratos, on the other hand, looked worried.  
"What's wrong?"  
"With how many spirits have they got pacts?"  
Lloyd thought.  
"Gnome .. Celsius .. Volt and Undine .. I _think_ they were talking about Fire and Wind while we were at Shadow .. but other than that, I don't know." he finally said, remembering how he had lost it at the altar.  
".. They were in Triet."  
"How do you know?"  
"I got food in Sylvarant and Tethe'alla and I ran into them in Triet." Kratos explained. "So, they probably had formed a pact with Ifrit already. And Sylph .."  
"But if they already had six pacts, the worlds must've reacted. And we would've noticed that .. right?"  
Kratos shook his head "_We_ wouldn't notice. Derris Quaran is too far away." and he looked back at the sphere.

"Come within the vicinity of the girls' beds, Zelos, and I'll show you the power of the six spirits!" Shihna snapped at the Chosen, who grinned.  
"I hear ya, Sweetcheeks."  
Shihna growled, while Refill sighed and seemed lost in worried thoughts.

"Well, that explains." Lloyd sighed. "Only one more pact."  
Kratos was pondering.  
"I'll be right back." he said and left Lloyd.  
Lloyd sighed and lent back onto the pillow and his gaze fell onto the sphere. It was still active, showing how Genius was cheering Shihna and Zelos on, who were in a fight again, and Collet trying to sooth it.  
He sat up and scooted to the edge, staring at it, pulling his knees up and resting his head on it.

What would he give for being with them right now.  
Without the horrible nightmares torturing him, the fever, the secret he was keeping from them.  
He put his hand on the sphere and noticed that he could change the perspective. So, he moved his hand around, until he was in close view of the fighters and the cheerers. Shihna seemed to be winning, since she had given Zelos a nasty hit with her cards, a bright red mark on the Chosen's cheek.  
Collet went and looked at the mark, only shrieking, when Zelos flung his arms around her and wanted to kiss her. Another hit from Shihna for that. Regal took the matter in hand and put a salve on the Chosen's cheek and slapped a bandage on it, while Presea was just watching and Refill furiously writing something.

"Dammit."  
Lloyd started and looked up. Kratos came back and looked frustrated.  
"What's wrong?"  
"The Coresystem isn't done yet." he said and explained to Lloyd what the coresystem was doing.  
Lloyd nodded, having completely forgotten about it. Then he got an idea.  
"Dad, you go ahead to the light seal and catch them off before they make a pact." Lloyd said. "I'll stay next to the coresystem computer and tell you the result as soon as it's out."  
Kratos looked a bit surprised and then nodded.  
"Very well."

The seraphim led his son to the coresystem computer.  
Lloyd sat on the chair and stared at the huge screen, a bar on it saying 57 percent for an order.  
"Here." Kratos gave Lloyd a tiny headset and the boy put it on. "When it's done, just tell me what the result is." The seraphim himself attached something to his right ear, which looked like a headphone.  
"You can count on me." Lloyd smirked a bit and lent back on the chair, waiting, since it was the only thing he could do. Kratos nodded one last time and left.  
Lloyd had no idea how long he was in the room and waited, yawning once or twice.  
He couldn't fall asleep! If he did, he'd probably wake up when it's too late and his message would be too late.  
But the fever was getting at him again .. his vision got blurrier and he shook his head.  
He had to stay awake!  
He looked at the screen. 61 percent.  
Maybe .. a little nap .. would be okay ..  
No! He had to stay awake!  
Lloyd pinched his cheeks and pulled his hair. He felt it! And it was keeping him awake! Perfect!

Lloyd sat up with a start.  
He _had_ fallen asleep! Dammit! The screen was already on 100 percent and a message in angel language was on it.  
He read it .. and didn't understand anything! But he had gotten the whole language just recently!  
He should be able to read it! Why couldn't he even recognize a 'Koban' or an 'Eron'?!  
Lloyd tapped the headset quickly.  
"Dad! Dad, you there?"  
No answer.  
Dammit!!  
The door slid open and Lloyd didn't move, afraid to see what it was.  
"Too late."  
The screen went black and Lloyd could see the person behind him without turning around.  
Yggdrasill.  
"T .. Too late, Yggdrasill-sama?" Lloyd finally brougt out, his voice traced with fear.  
"Yes. It was a disaster what happened."  
Lloyd held his breath. What disaster? Because of the final pact? Just what _had_ happened!?  
And .. what about his father?  
"Don't worry about Kratos." Yggdrasill said. "I've taken care of him. A horrible risk for me, but it went fine."  
T-Taken care of him .. what did he mean? The chair shook with Lloyd's trembling.  
"Oh, don't worry. Nothing disgusting I did." Yggdrasill and made an 'Ah!' noise. "There is somebody I'd like you to meet. Come."  
Lloyd gulped, looking down onto the keyboard, not daring to turn around or look up.  
He didn't want to see who it was.  
If it was his father or not.  
"Not very polite to not look at your friend." Yggdrasill mocked him. "It's a pleasant surprise."  
Lloyd slowly lifted his head, staring at the black screen. Another figure, small than Yggdrasill, was standing next to the leader.  
".. Collet!!" Lloyd turned around and stared at her.  
Her head was hanging a bit low and her eyes looked black, rather than the bright blue they usually were.  
"Collet?" Lloyd asked, starting to get scared. "What's wrong? Hey!"  
Yggdrasill smirked.  
"It's your Collet, yes. And not." he said. "You see, although that disaster struck, it all went well. You know why?"  
Lloyd bit his lip, too scared to answer.  
"Exactly, because I got my hands on her!" Yggdrasill put an arm around Collet's shoulders, who didn't move a muscle. "You see, we took off the keycrest you had made for her and-"  
"She .. lost .. her soul .. again?" Lloyd brought out, realizing it and trembled even more.  
"Exactly!" Yggdrasill clapped his hands and put his arm back around Collet's shoulder. "Now, Collet dear, do you recognize him?"  
Collet lifted her head a bit, looking at Lloyd with her blank eyes.  
Lloyd felt very uncomfortable with such a dark, gloomy Collet. He had always preferred the happier one.  
She nodded her head.  
"Ah, now .. You have something to tell him?"  
Again, she nodded.  
"Well, then," Yggdrasill said and gave her back a pat. "Do it."  
Collet stepped a bit closer, Lloyd tried to back off, but he was right up to the coresystem computer.  
She looked at him and opened her mouth.  
"You .. it's all .. because of you." she said. "That disaster .."  
"I .. I didn't want it to happen! Definitely not!" Lloyd protested, trying to think of a way to get Collet back to her old self and how to run away, both of them, from Yggdrasill.  
"And .. that I've been taken." she continued, as if she hadn't heard him. "And now, because of you .. I'm caputerd .. and Mr Kratos is .." her voice broke.  
Oh no .. if she was like this, he sincerely hoped she wouldn't say it out loud.  
He didn't want to know!  
"Your fault .. everything .." Collet mumbled and put her hands underneath the stiff cloak from her clothes. "And I heard everything .. you lied to us .. and have been working for him .." Her head nodded a bit towards Yggdrasill.  
"I .. I didn't want to." Lloyd stuttered. "Really not. I .. I just became an angel to .. walk around in Welgaia .."  
"You lied .. and lied .. and lied .." Collet mumbled, gripping something and her hands appeared again. A knife with a jagged blade in her hands. "It's all .. your fault ..!"  
She lifted her hands, angry tears running down from her blank eyes.  
Lloyd didn't know if the situation was scaring him more or if it was this opposite of the Collet he knew.  
"Collet .."  
"You lied .. and it's your fault that I .. and Mr Kratos .. and it's your fault that Sensei, Genius and the others ..!!"  
Oh no, he didn't want to know!  
"Collet!"  
"It's your fault!!" she screamed and her hands flung down quickly, the point of the blade towards Lloyd's chest.  
_DON'T!!_

"Ah!!" Lloyd bolted up, looking around, frantically looking for something.  
He was alone.  
The screen! He turned. The screen was saying 85 percent.  
So he .. wasn't too late. No disaster struck .. nothing happened .. yet.  
"_Lloyd?_"  
Lloyd jumped a foot and looked around, until he remember the headset.  
"D-Dad?"  
"_What's wrong? You yelled._"  
"No-Nothing .." Lloyd said, trying to calm down again. "I fell asleep .. and had a nightmare."  
Kratos made a worried noise, but seemed to accept it.  
Lloyd decided that sitting was too dangerous, he could fall asleep again, so he stood up and started walking around the room.  
_Bi-beep! Bi-beep!_  
Lloyd walked over to the screen. 100 percent and a text was appearing, like typed, underneath.  
The boy sighed relieved, he could read it. He read it quickly.  
"Dad?"  
"_Yes?_"  
"The system is done."  
"_What's it say?_"  
Lloyd repeated to him what the text said.  
"_Well, that's bad._"  
"I thought so, too." Lloyd agreed. "So, what to do?"  
"_I'll try and persuade them to stop. If we're lucky, they'll even agree to release the pacts they made._"  
Lloyd sincerely hoped that they would do that.  
"_Here they come._"  
"Good Luck."

Kratos turned towards the group, them running up the last flight of stairs.  
They stopped on the light bridge, when they saw him.  
"Kratos!" Refill said.  
There was a silence, nobody knowing what to do. Kratos wanted to tell them about the pacts, when Genius looked eager at him.  
"Any news from Lloyd?" he asked, everybody wanting to know.  
Kratos sighed quietly.  
Maybe telling them what they wanted to hear would sooth them and agree to everything else.  
"Yes, he woke up."  
The others sighed in relief.  
"How is he doing?" Collet now asked, looking worried.  
"He's doing fine. He's still a bit weak and is resting." Or at least, he hope he was going to do that next.

Lloyd frowned, going back to his chambers.  
He couldn't help it. He was too worked up and sat in front of the sphere, watching the others.  
Kratos was staring at a blue-haired man .. but where were the others?  
He changed the view and saw that Regal and Shihna were just vanishing in the teleporter.  
So they hadn't listened! Dammit!  
"Why are you still trying this, Yuan?" Kratos asked.  
Yuan ..? Wasn't that the man that had wanted to take him with on the Fooji Mountains?  
"It's the only way it'll work."  
"So you'd do anything to fulfill it. Even if it means that the worlds will die!?"  
"They won't die!!" Yuan yelled. "They are dying, if it's not stopped!"  
What the heck were they talking about!?  
Lloyd frowned and gasped, when his father and Yuan started to fight.  
He had to help him!  
Lloyd got up and held his head for a moment. That damn fever ..!  
But that wouldn't stop him.  
He dashed out of his chambers and ran to the first teleporter he saw and gave in the coordinates.

Once back on Sylvarant, he exited the Tower of Salvation, remembering for a second how everything had started here and revealed his wings, flying north to the Tower of Mana.  
A few times, he had to stop in midair, biting his lip. The fever was such a nuisance! It weakened him and made him slow.  
He wanted to land on the roof of the Tower, even if he'd run into the others there first, but a barrier stopped him. Maybe that's why the others didn't use the rheairds to land on the top.  
Lloyd cursed and flew down, entering the Tower the human way.  
He raced up the stairs, shutting his eyes whenever he felt dizzy, either from the fever or the constant curve the stairs were doing.  
And, finally, when he saw the first lightbridge over him, he saw the figure of his father.  
"Dad!!" he yelled.  
Yuan and Kratos didn't seem to hear him, instead they noticed a bright light coming through the tiny windows and raced onto the teleporter.  
"Dammit .." Lloyd cursed again and used his wings to fly the rest up.  
Halfway up though, there was an earthquake and the tower shook tremendously. A giant block of the ceiling dropped directly onto the teleporter, blocking the enter and exit from the altar.  
Lloyd frowned, thinking how they others were going to leave, when another part of the ceiling fell onto the floor right in front of him and crashed.  
The tower was going to collapse!!  
Lloyd then raced the fastest way he ever could've done on foot with his wings and escaped the tower, just when it started to sink.  
He looked up and saw several rheairds and two pairs of wings flying off, landing a bit of a distance from him. So there they were. He raced towards them, taking his wings back in.

"I know that!" Yuan snapped.  
Kratos ignored him and turned towards the group, but Zelos interrupted him.  
"Wait a minute, so this giant tree that's mutated from the Eternal Seed is going to destroy Sylvarant." he asked and Kratos nodded. "And Tethe'alla?"  
"They'll probably have huge earthquakes, but it's fine right now, since-"  
"Collet's regeneration journey pulled the seed closer to Sylvarant." Refill finished and nodded. "I see .."  
"But .. if we don't stop it, the whole world, and Tethe'alla later on, will die." Collet said and looked at everyone. "Isn't there a way to stop it?"  
"No." Yuan said instantly.  
"What!?"  
"The Tree is still getting mana from some source. As long as the source still exists, the Tree will continue to grow and won't get stopped."  
"So we first have to find the source, before thinking about stopping the Tree?" Refill asked.  
They two men nodded.  
Lloyd got closer, but decided to hide behind a rock, listening.  
Why not go to them? Maybe Sensei would ask him several questions.  
He wasn't ready for that. And too weak.  
A source for the Tree ..  
"The Ranch!" he called out, too late realizing that he said it out loud.  
Instantly, Kratos was next to him and smirked a bit.  
He pulled him by the scruff of the neck to the others.  
"Lloyd!" Collet called out and flung herself onto his chest. "You're alright!"  
Lloyd tried to steady himself and .. again .. he felt like he wanted to hurt her!  
"Eavesdropping isn't a good habit, boy." Yuan snapped.  
"What was that about the Ranch?" Refill asked.  
Lloyd peeled Collet from himself.  
"The Ranches. The human ranch of Iselia. It's so chok full with mana, the Tree is probably lapping it up." he said.  
"So, infiltrating it and destroying it would stop the Tree from growing."  
"But how are we going to destroy the Tree then?" Genius asked.  
Lloyd managed to sidestep slowly to Kratos and leaned a bit on him, feeling dizzy again.  
"You okay?" Kratos whispered.  
"Fine. Just the fever .."  
"You should lie in bed."  
"And let you have all the fun?" Lloyd grinned and steadied his voice. "Use Tethe'alla's Spirits."  
"Pardon?"  
"The elemental spirits. From Tethe'alla. Remember when you told us about Magnetic Poles, Sensei?" Lloyd asked.  
"Yes, but Tethe'alla and Sylvarant are opposites. They'd just strengthen the Tree."  
"No, they won't."  
"Please, Lloyd!" Refill snapped, starting to be very cross because of the situation. "Stop talking such nonsense or I'll have to grade you even lower!"  
"No, Sensei, see. Tethe'alla and Sylvarant are opposites." Lloyd explained. "So, in fact, Yes, they _will_ combine themselves. But since Tethe'alla's elemental spirits and Sylvarant's elemental spirits are the exact opposite from each other, the powers won't be able to last long and destroy each other."  
Silence kept on going and Refill's chin fell.  
And tears of joy burst from her eyes.  
"Oh, Lloyd .. You learned something! I'm so happy and proud of you!"  
Lloyd laughed embarassed and rubbed his neck.  
"Then I'll summon the spirits." Shihna said. "But how to get enough power and distance for it?"  
"The Mana Cannon." Yuan said. "We made Rodyle built it. It should power the spirits up even more."  
"Yeah, what happened to Rodyle?" Lloyd wondered, looking at his father.  
"He'd been trying to get us in, but they killed him." Kratos answered quietly.  
"Best if we split up. Shihna, you go with the Renegades." Kratos said and nodded over to Yuan. "We'll go to the Ranch and shut it down."  
"Wait a minute, aren't you our enemy?" Genius asked, looking suspisciously at Kratos.  
Lloyd flinched.  
"Perhaps. But Cruxis wants that Tree stopped as well. And I've been to the Iselia Ranch several times. I know the way."  
So they departed.

Inside the Ranch, Kratos worked on the computer, showing them a display of the Ranch.  
"Shouldn't we release the prisoners, if we shut this Ranch down?" Collet asked.  
"It would be a very good idea, but .." Refill sighed. "we have to hurry and stop the manaflow. And no idea how fast that Tree is going to grow before we finish both."  
"Better split up." Lloyd sighed, leaning against the wall.  
Damn fever .. it was getting worse.  
His vision was still blurry and everything was starting to get shifted and torn apart.  
It felt like he was in a non-stop nightmare. He was just waiting for the black snakes circling his legs.  
"Your fault, Lloyd!" Collet called out.  
"_What?_" he asked, looking up suddenly, scared that they had caught on.  
"Your idea, Lloyd!" Collet said, smiling. "It's perfect!"  
They discussed who was going to rescue the prisoners and who was going to shut down the manaflow.  
Lloyd, Kratos, Refill and Presea were going to the manaflow, Regal, Genius, Zelos and Collet to the prisoners.  
The two groups were discussing where the prisoners could go and where to meet up again.

So hot ..  
He felt his head. It was burning up. He could feel it.  
And the spinning just wouldn't stop.  
Maybe if he .. sat down .. just for a moment.

"Lloyd ..!"  
Kratos was gripping the boy's shoulders, holding him up.  
Lloyd did his best to keep his eyes open, but he liked to put his head on his father's shoulder and just sleep.  
But he'd best not.  
"I told you, you should be in bed." Kratos warned him, speaking lowly so the others wouldn't notice anything.

Lloyd felt sick again.  
Here he was, in a ranch, working for Cruxis and doing stuff for Cruxis.  
But he wanted to save the worlds, not Martel.  
He was sure that Martel was a nice person, but one person wasn't as much of a sacrifice as two worlds.  
He hit himself mentally for thinking that.  
Wouldn't it mean that sacrificing Collet as Martel's vessel would resurrect Martel AND save the worlds?  
He was sure that Yggdrasill .. Mithos, would agree to giving both worlds a lot of mana, once Martel was resurrected.  
Then he thought of his mother.  
What would she say? Would she be proud of him? Or ashamed?  
Dad told him that Anna had always wanted a peaceful world. He was, sort of, working for that.  
But he wasn't doing much.  
Perhaps .. she was a real angel and was looking at him right now. Crying over what her son was doing ..  
Lloyd felt neauseasious again.

"Dad ..?"  
"Mh?"  
"What .. What would Mom want?" he wondered, clenching his teeth and surpressing a trembling. "Would she .. want me to destroy the ranches? Or would she want me to ..?"  
He couldn't think of anything right now. His head felt like it was filled with water.  
".. Anna loathed the time she had to spend in the ranch." he said, remembering his dearest. "And she felt angry, whenever she thought of all the other people still trapped in the ranches."  
Lloyd listened, trying to get a straight thought.  
His mother hated the ranches.  
And he didn't find them very useful, either.  
Perhaps it was nothing that was good for Cruxis.  
And it didn't help the others very much, but ..  
"Alright .." Lloyd said and got up, grinning at his father. "I'll do it. For Mom!"  
Kratos looked surprised and nodded then, ruffling his hair.

Somehow, making that descision, he felt much better now.  
He didn't feel that guilty anymore.  
Sure, he still felt guilty for lying to his friends.  
But, a straight thought made him feel better.  
Not a huge web of whats or ifs in his head.

"Lloyd, I was wondering," Refill said when they were following Kratos to the mainroom. "why are you wearing different clothes than before?"  
Lloyd flinched, he hadn't thought of that!  
"I had some fever and my clothes were drenched, so I changed into some clothes I saw."  
Refill nodded and they got into the room.  
The leader, Forcystus, was waiting for them.  
"And here you finally are." he said and grinned even more when he saw Lloyd and Kratos. "Rather obvious why you are here. But that you would go back on their side was pretty obvious, Lloyd-chan!"  
Refill and Presea frowned, Lloyd paled and Kratos just glared.  
"Lloyd, how does he know your name?" Refill asked.  
"R-remember what Genius told you about the attack on Iselia?" he redirected, since it was a time where Forcystus had found out his name.  
"But seeing the time you've spent with him" Forcystus went on, his head nodding towards Kratos. "I seriously thought for about a minute that you'd stay loyal."  
"What are you talking about?" Lloyd asked him, and grabbed his swordhilts.  
"Obvious, isn't it? But then again, if those two weren't here," this time he pointed at Refill and Presea. "you would be acting and talking very differently to me. Isn't that right, Lloyd-sa-"  
"I'll kill you!!" Lloyd yelled, charging forwards, his swords pointed together, as if he was going to strike clearly through Forcystus.  
Forcystus, though, stepped aside and whammed his cannon arm into Lloyd's face, the boy sliding onto the ground.  
The leader of the Iselia Ranch stamped his foot hard on Lloyd's chest.

He sure felt that!  
He gasped for air, trying to wiggle free somehow, but it was like that man was made of Platin.

Kratos, Refill and Presea started to charge at him, but Forcystus just laughed.  
"Play with them for a while!" he said and several floating stones rushed towards them and started to attack the others.  
Forcystus grinned and bent down to Lloyd, who was struggling to brake free.  
"Poor little one" he grinned. "chained to the floor by a subordinate."  
Lloyd stared at him, relieved that the clashes from the fight were so loud that they drowned out anything Forcystus said, so they wouldn't be able to hear it.  
"You know, even though you are great Kratos' son, the newest, the fifth seraphim. What an honor." Forcystus said and laughed. "But to be honest, I hate you! Such a cocky little bastard, you and your idealistic thinking. What a joke!"  
Lloyd growled and grabbed Forcystus' ankle, trying to move it. It was getting rather hard to breathe.  
"Does it hurt? Good!" the leader grinned and stamped even harder, Lloyd gasping for air. "Seriously, the way you think, it would be better if you joined those fools over there" pointing at Presea and Refill "and try to change the worlds. And, be happy, they changed the worlds. They made them worse. The Tree is going crazy. It's going to change the surface of the worlds. Perfect, isn't it? Go back to them and let yourself get killed!"  
"If the Tree isn't stopped .." Lloyd said, clenching his teeth and getting so much air as possible. "Martel will .. disappaer .. because of the lack of mana-Argh!!"  
Forcystus had stamped him again.  
"Now, why did you have to remind me?" he sneered. "You see, if you get killed, your mana and that of the others could be sacrificed to Martel-sama. Except for that blonde Chosen of yours, you know, the one you like so much. She'll live as Martel's vessel. Isn't that nice of me to let _her_ live?"  
"You .. sick bastard .." Lloyd gasped, when he saw a black swirl around Forcystus, inclined with a green spark.  
His .. mana?  
How could he see it.  
Long he couldn't think, since Forcystus smashed the tip of his cannonarm onto Lloyd's forehead and made him completely immobile.  
"You know, 'Lloyd-sama', I think once I've got you out of the way, _I_ will become the next seraphim. I have done so much for Cruxis, while didn't do anything!" Forcystus' expression turned into a grotesque feature. "You just became a seraphim because your Daddy is one. And I don't think Yggdrasill will mind. He'll be so proud of me. I mean, apart from Pronyma, I am the last living Cardinal."  
Lloyd kept staring at the mana surrounding Forcystus.  
It looked rather like the swirly snakes from his nightmares.  
Perhaps .. this _was_ a nightmare! And he'd soon wake up screaming, finding himself in his Cruxis Bed.  
The last pact not made yet and the Tree still just a Seed, containing Martel's soul.  
"Wouldn't it be great for you to leave Cruxis?"  
Lloyd's heartbeat stopped for a second.  
"Going back to your friends and forgetting everything that had happened?" the Cardinal mocked him. "It can be done. Believe me. I have done it several times. I mean, I assissted Kvar in his Ranch a few times. Made some of the really useless inferior beings into believing nothing happened and let them free. Of course, a few months later, they'd turn into beasts. It's natural."  
His head was aching so much, it felt it was tearing up ..  
"You know who the next one was going to be, before she escaped?"  
Lloyd's eyes grew wide.  
"Exactly. Your mother. Now, what would she say if her son was in the organization, that had caused her death?" the Cardinal smirked and then covered his mouth with his normal hand. "Oops, my mistake. She actually died because she was with your Daddy over there. If your Mamma had stayed, she would've lived longer."  
His mother ..

What would she say?  
Here he was, in that organzation, with his father, trying to do in his best friend from childhood.  
Who was he really loyal to? Cruxis? His friends? Himself?  
If his head would stop hurting so much, just for a second ..  
If he'd go back to his friends .. how could he forget?  
He was an angel.  
He had Aionis in his body.  
He had changed since the beginning of the journey.

"Oh well .. I'll just bump you off now." Forcystus said in a matter-of-fact voice, shrugging his shoulders.  
His cannonarm opened up, showing a mutated arm with a opening at the end. It started to glow.  
_Cruxis .. his friends .. himself .. for his mother's sake .._  
"Bye-Bye, Lloydie-poo."

His head was feeling worse, like it was going to peel off the skin by inches.  
His grip tightened around Forcystus' ankle and his body trembled.  
But not with fear.  
With anger.  
With hatred.  
And ..  
And .. _the wish to kill_!

Lloyd yanked his arms and Forcystus' foot got off his chest, the rest of the Cardinal falling onto the ground.  
The boy got up quickly, holding his head, even the others, who had destroyed every flying stone - except one - watched.  
"_How dare you .._" Lloyd growled, his voice sounding much deeper and fiercer than before.  
Forcystus stared at him, frightened by the sudden powerboost Lloyd had gotten.  
"_Up!!_" the boy commanded and the Cardinal followed.  
Lloyd took out one of his swords and pointed it at Forcystus.  
"Are you .. going to kill me ..?" he asked, scared.  
Lloyd just nodded his head over to the edge of a wide shaft, going downwards. The mana was definitely comming from over there.  
Frocystus stood his ground.  
"_Move!_" Lloyd commanded and slashed at Forcystus, cutting a fine scratch on his left cheek. "_For every step you won't take, I'll hack off a piece of your body. Now, move!_"  
Forcystus went to the edge, standing on the little piece of ground that looked like a plank.  
"_Go on._" Lloyd said, standing behind Forcystus, the tip of his blade prodding the Cardinal's back.  
Forcystus took tiny steps, until he was standing just before the fall.  
"_Aren't you going to move?_" Lloyd asked, grinning fiercely. "_.. FINE!!_"  
He slashed and a deep cut spread over Forcystus' back and the Cardinal fell into the manashaft.  
Lloyd smirked triumphly and stared at the keyboard of the tiny computer next to him.  
Swiftly, he typed on it and the shaft stopped to glow.  
"Lloyd ..?" Refill asked, scared by what she had just seen, but also impressed, in a certain degree.  
"Lloyd-san? Are you alright?"  
Kratos grabbed his son's shoulders and frowned.  
Lloyd's eyes looked positively red and he had a queer smirk on his lips.  
"Lloyd, get a hold of yourself!" Kratos yelled, not angry but full with worry of his son and gave him a hard smack on the cheek.  
"You damn bastard!!" Lloyd yelled, grabbing Kratos' cloak. "What kinda father are you, hitting your son!?"  
And after he had yelled at Kratos, his eyes got unfocused again and he sank down to his knees.  
"Well, he's back to normal."  
"Then why is he unconscious?" Refill asked cross.  
"He's not unconscious." Kratos said and pulled Lloyd up, who grinned in a dreamy way, like he was high on something. "He's just sick."  
They left to recrute with the others. Refill and Presea decided to stay quiet about what they'd seen.

"You guys, there you are and you're all alright-Oh dear Martel, what's wrong with Lloyd?" Collet asked worried to pieces.  
"Nothing, just a fever." Kratos calmed her down and shook Lloyd a bit.  
Lloyd grumbled and held his head.  
"Dad, I think I need a .. a .." he couldn't find the word. "an Icebag! Yes, that's what I mean, an icebag. And more clothes, I think. Damn those nightmares .." the last being a mumble to himself.  
"Fine, just don't faint again." Kratos said and Lloyd nodded vigorously.  
They were wondering where to bring the now-free prisoners, when a laugh came from inside.  
Forcystus was leaning heavily against the wall and grinned.  
"I'm a Cardinal of Cruxis. I don't die that easily, you little bastard!" he yelled at Lloyd.  
Lloyd frowned, not remembering of course what had happened, when Forcystus' cannonarm opened again and he finally shot a blast at Lloyd.  
"Lloyd!" Collet screamed and threw herself infront of him, getting a full blast and part of her clothes ripped off.  
"Co-.. What ..?" Lloyd stared at the green scaleskin.

**Cat-Alin: **I've been writing on this chapter all day!**  
Shihna: **All the time?**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah .. except the break to finish 'Lord Edgware dies' from Agatha Christie.**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't get any money for mentioning any product or famous person's names!**  
Cat-Alin: **Damn right! Oh, I'm so tired. I should go to bed. Good night, everyone!**  
Shihna: **Good night, Binky-boy. Dear Readers, a review, please?**  
Cat-Alin: **Oh yes, the grated radish with crushed ice cubes and honey I got from volume 6 of 'Skip Beat!'.


	14. His father's plead

**Cat-Alin: **Yay, everybody loves Psycho-Lloyd! Why is it that people love psycho-people?**  
Shihna: **Does it matter?**  
Cat-Alin: **Uh, a bit. I mean, I LOVE to give Lloyd all that trouble, but I do have to turn the story around still ..**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Namco, nor Tales of Symphonia, as a game or the Animation. If she did, Yuan would've flipped his ponytail a lot more.**  
Cat-Alin: **Ah, call me a fetishist, but I think that looked hot!

The green scaleskin ..  
He had read about it somewhere. Just recently.  
But where?  
He couldn't remember!  
Where? It was something important in a certain legend.

He was shaking Collet, trying to get her to respond. His father belting out commands.  
"Chosen, get off of that man! Genius, send the message, or else it'll be too late!"  
Collet opened her eyes in all the confusion and Lloyd sighed relieved.  
"Lloyd .. are you hurt?" she asked.  
"No. Thanks to you."  
Collet smiled and then seemed to notice that her close was torn and the green scaleskin visible.  
She quickly sat up and covered the shoulder with her hand.  
"Don't look!" she hissed.  
Lloyd frowned, remembering how he had yelled that just a few days ago.  
"Collet-"  
"I said, Don't look! It's disgusting!!" she shrieked, wanting to go on, but the machine was beeping.  
"_The Tree has disappeared and is now back in it's seedform._" Yuan's voice came.  
Lloyd frowned, wanting to ask, but he would blow his cover completely. So, Kratos knelt down.  
"If the Tree is gone and the Seed save, Martel is safe as well?"  
"_Must be great news to you. .. I wish it were different .._"  
Lloyd frowned even more, remembering ..

So, _Yuan _was Martel's fiancé?  
He remembered how his father had told him that Martel had been engaged.  
And how Mithos had hated that.  
But he never said that Yuan was the one .. but that meant that Yuan was the leader of the Renegades, Cruxis' enemy. Aside from his friends.  
Then .. Yuan used to be a friend of his father's?  
That aside, everything was safe now ..

Lloyd looked at Collet, who was still trying to hide her decoloration.  
"Collet .."  
"It's .. disgusting .." she whined, trying to hide the tears, but Lloyd knew they were there. "It's horrible .. Isn't it?"  
Lloyd shook his head, still trying to remember where he had seen that before.  
"Don't lie to me." she said, turning away. "It's so disgusting .."  
Lloyd stepped closer, wanting to comfort her.  
"Stay away!!" she screamed and fainted, the boy catching her.  
"Let's go to Iselia." Refill said. "Collet needs to rest. Besides, the prisoners need a place to stay for a while."  
Genius was quiet, remembering the exile he and Lloyd had gotten, but the boy nodded, wanting to pick Collet up and carry her, but only made it halfway, the fever giving him a wave of dizzyness.  
Kratos placed a mantle around Collet and picked her up.

On their way to the forest, Regal and Zelos took care of the monsters in front, Presea the ones in the back, while Refill and Genius tried to treat the minor wounds on the way, the rest in the village. Kratos was carrying Collet and Lloyd was carrying a little girl of about four years old.  
The mother was too weak from the imprisonment and one of the Desians had broken her arm recently.  
Lloyd frowned.  
"Something the matter?" Kratos asked.  
"Mhh, not really. I just feel weird to be carrying her."  
"How so?"  
"Well .. agewise, I could be the father."  
Kratos chuckled, then laughed out.  
"Lloyd, you amuse me every time." he said. "Agewise, we could actually be brothers."  
"Yeah, but you're actually-"  
"Sh!" Kratos hushed him up quickly, lowering his voice. "If they find out my true age, Refill will trace me like an experimental subject and find out about Yggdrasill."  
"And he wouldn't like that .." Lloyd said, nodding.

Collet was lying down in her room, the others on the lower floor, sitting at the table - except for Kratos and Lloyd - talking to Phaidra.  
"The Tower of Salvation disappeared?" Zelos frowned.  
"Yes .. after that earthquake, it faded away."  
"Poor Collet .." Presea mumbled.  
"What do you mean?" Lloyd asked, who had recently gotten some pill from his father. Something against fever, or so he said.  
"They'll accuse her of failing and bringing Sylvarant's devastation."  
"Yeah .." Zelos sighed, but then grinned. "But it happened before that Chosens didn't make it."  
"But they're all dead." Phaidra put in. "And Collet is alive."  
Refill, who had been very quiet, looked at Lloyd.  
"Lloyd, come with me for a second."  
The boy frowned, but nodded and followed his teacher outside, both sitting on the fence.  
"What is it?"  
"I'd like to get some information about you - you know, the Aionis we put in to you."  
"Mhm?"  
The half-elf woman took out a notepad with questions on it.  
"Well, I know by now that you have rather violent phases, I assume that's from the Aionis?"  
"Perhaps .. I never really thought about it."  
"Anything you feel when those phases come? Like a bloodrush, twitching in your arms or anything like that?"  
"Mh .." Lloyd thought, holding his head. Whatever his father gave him, made him worse. "The heartbeat gets faster and stronger, rather painful even, Migraine as a side-effect afterwards. Sometimes a black-out."  
"I take it that your immune-system got worse, seeing as you got a fever? You're usually the health in person."  
"Could be."  
"Anything that has changed for you, since you got the Aionis? Appetite, sleeping-cycle?"  
Lloyd hesitated for a minute.  
If he would say free out that he didn't have any appetite anymore and that he actually didn't sleep before he got the Aionis, she'd know he's getting the full angel transformation.  
"Very little or no appetite and sleep disturbed by realistic nightmares."  
"What kind of nightmares?" Refill asked, her hand flying over the pad while she was writing.  
".. Dreams of real situations that have gone bad and end up with me being killed."  
Refill frowned and sighed.  
"Oh well, this will do for now. But if there's anything else, tell me."

The whole group, except for Kratos who stayed behind, decided to walk around the village, seeing as the half-elves and the boy hadn't been there for a long time.  
They noticed a mass of people, all arguing around and when the Mayor saw them he saw red.  
"This is horrible! The Ranch destroyed even though we have a treaty, the Tower of Salvation disappering and you bringing in the Chosen, unconscious, and several other people, some from the ranch!"  
"I see you haven't changed." Genius mumbled, crossing his arms, growling.  
"And on top of all, you two aren't elves, you're half-elves!" the mayor shouted. "I bet you brought the Desians to this place!"  
"What!?"  
Lloyd held his head, taking a deep breath. All the shouting was giving him a migraine and he had hated the mayor from the beginning.  
"And you two have been exiled!" the mayor pointed a finger at Lloyd and Genius. "How dare you come into this village?"  
"Oh, shut your fucking mouth." Lloyd finally said.  
Everyone stared.  
Lloyd was usually one who didn't swear - except for "bastard" or "dammit".  
"What did you say? Have you forgotten who I am?" the mayor growled and, in return, Lloyd glared at him.  
"Yeah, you're a big pump-ass bafoon, that's what you are." he said. "You exiled us, because Genius and I were at the Ranch - we admit that freely - but for a rescue and we had been tricked beforehand. You keep shoving all the responsibility onto 'the Chosen' and if one thing goes it's, _of course_, the Chosen's fault. Why not do something on your own for once?"  
The mayor gaped.  
"B.. But we're powerless."  
"No, you're not." Lloyd said, uncrossing his arms and counting off. "You could give the prisoners from the Ranch a place to stay for a while; give the Chosen some encouragement or a little help if it's possible from you and stop relying so much on somebody else. Do something on your own. It's not that hard."  
"But that doesn't alter the fact that those two are half-elves! They should be banned!" the mayor fussled, getting redder in the face.  
"But .. Genius is the cleverest kid in the whole village. He can calculate several things at once and fast." one boy, who had been a student of Refill's, said.  
"And Refill-sensei may be a bit scary when it comes to studying time, but she's always very pleased when you know the answer." a girl said.  
Refill bit her lip and hasted away, Genius going after her, worrying.  
Presea nodded.  
"What you are actually doing, is blame people for their race or family. They can't help it."  
"See?" Lloyd said, smirking. "Everybody, even the kids who don't understand why half-elves are so feared and discriminated, have understood much better than you did. It doesn't matter at all, who or what you are. Do what you can and everyone will accept you."  
".. Mayor, they're right." a village woman said. "We're going to give the people from the ranch a home, until we built something up for them in the village or helped them to their homesteads. And no matter what you say, we'll do it."  
"And besides," an elderly woman said, who smiled widely. "Now that the ranch is empty, we don't need the treaty anmore. We're free from the Desians."  
The mayor looked around, looking red and then huffed.  
"Fine! Do what you want!" he snapped and went away.

They were looking for Refill and Genius and found the two of them at the remains of their burned down house.  
"Why did you run away, Ojou-sama?" Zelos said and rubbed his hands together. "I was so looking forward to you making a toothpick out of that guy."  
"I'm not gonna waste my time with bafoons like him."  
"Aww .."  
"Lloyd, thank you." Genius said.  
"What for?"  
"Well, for going at the mayor like that."  
Lloyd shrugged his shoulders.  
"I just can't stand intolerant people like him." he mumbled and turned around to see his father. "Excuse me for a second."  
He went to the seraphim and grabbed his collar.  
"What the heck did ya give me in that pill!?"  
"A pill chok full of vitamin c, b, a and several other ones, as well as calcium."  
Lloyd sighed, not bothering why he felt so shitty still.  
"Anyway, Phaidra suggested to go to Dirk. He's a dwarf and supposed to know a lot of sicknesses."  
So, they went through the forest again and came out of the other side.

Dirk listened to the story they had to tell him and nodded.  
"As interrresting as it may seem, I'm sorrrrry. I don't have any idea what kinda sickness it could be. Betterrrr ask a dwarrrrf in Tethe'alla." he finally sighed. "But you arrrre all welcome to stay forrrr the night."  
"I'll decline politely." Kratos said and left the house, Lloyd following him.  
"Hang on, Dad. There's something I wanna talk about."  
Kratos looked at his son and took out his wings.  
"Fine. Follow me."  
Lloyd quickly took out his wings as well and followed the seraphim through the skies, until they got to the top of a grassy hill, several miles away from Iselia or Triet.  
"What is it?" Kratos said, who was sitting next to Lloyd.

Where should he start?  
Actually, he shouldn't even bother asking. It was obvious that it couldn't be true.  
Why should he even worry about?  
But .. somehow he just had to ask the question.  
Maybe he feared the answer ..

"Well .. when we were in the control room of the ranch .. you know that Forcystus pinned me down."  
"Mhm." Kratos went, a very displeased and threatening growl in his voice.  
"Well .. he mocked me," Lloyd told him, but noticed how whiny it sounded. "but I don't care about that! Um, well, he then said .. um .."  
Kratos cocked his head to the side.  
"Well, he said something about Mom." the boy stuttered. "He was supposed to hypnotise her, or something like that, in believing that nothing happened to her in the ranch. And would let her free."  
".. Yes?"  
"I know it sounds weird, but I know that even if he had managed to do that, Mom would've died. I mean, repressing the memories of the ranch don't make the exsphere disappear."  
Kratos nodded.  
"Forcystus also said something like that. But he then said, that .." the boy took a deep breath, ready to say what he wanted to ask. "that Mom actually died because she was with you."  
Lloyd stared at the green grass underneath his white, belted boots, didn't dare to move or to breathe.  
".. That may be true."  
Lloyd gasped slightly and stared at his father, who was looking down, lost in his thoughts.  
"You see, I met Anna on Sylvarant shortly after she escaped the ranch. And I had been running from Cruxis for a while already, so I don't know if what Forcystus told you was true. I never heard of that."  
"I told you that we travelled around, always in fear of Cruxis catching us. Of course, Kvar caught us close to Iselia." Kratos told him. "And I've been haunted of the thought that, if only I had left Anna alone, helped her to a city and left her then, she would've still be alive."  
Lloyd was too shocked to say anything. So it was true! His mother _had_ died because of his father.  
"After a while, I calmed down and thought again. Yes, Anna died at the age of twenty-six, because her exsphere was removed before she had gotten a keycrest." the seraphim said and smirked a bit. "We had actually travelled to Iselia, because we heard that a dwarf was living there, who could make a keycrest for her."  
"But you got caught beforehand."  
Kratos nodded again.  
"So, in a way, she did die because of me. If I had used my wings to fly us to Iselia and search for the dwarf, we would've been done in time. But .. I had stopped using my wings or any kind of my angelic skills a few years ago."  
"Why?"  
The seraphim looked over to him.  
"Because you were born."  
"Me ..?"  
"I told Anna that it would be best for you to never know the truth about Cruxis, the Desians or anything of that. I wanted you to stay as pure as you were when you smiled the first time at me."  
Lloyd grew very red around the cheeks of this compliment from his father and Kratos smiled.  
"So, in order to keep you from knowing, I kept my wings hidden the whole time, practiced my swordsman skill even further, so I could defeat the angels sent by Cruxis without my angelic power. Thus, when we travelled it was by foot and therefore slower."  
"Is that what you think is the reason? That Mom died?"  
"It's very likely the reason. But, as I said, I started to think it over again and again." Kratos said, and crossed his fingers with each other. "And I finally thought that it was for the better, that Anna had left the ranch or had met me. And you."  
".. How so?"  
"Well, living in the ranches isn't very easy, you can imagine that. Anna was always quiet about the time she had spent in the ranch, but a few years afterwards, she told me what was happening in them and how much she loathed it. And then I realized, so many years later, that if she had stayed in the ranch, she still would've died. Perhaps earlier, perhaps later. Maybe even more painful than she did. So, she may have died by my fault, but I think, or at least hope, that she would forgive me for it."  
Lloyd was speechless.  
The whole thing was already sad, but the more he thought that, if his mother hadn't escaped the ranch, she still would've died. Never meeting her father and, therefore, Lloyd himself not being born at all.  
"Lloyd," Kratos said and put an arm around Lloyd's shoulders, pulling him closer. "I know a lot of people wouldn't believe me, if I said this, but .. I loved your mother dearly. And I still do. Of course they say that angels lose any feeling they have, but, well, love is one they can never lose."  
Lloyd nodded, getting red in the face.  
"And I'm happy to know that, although Anna and I shared very little years together, with each other and you, I remember her saying to me that since she met me and had you, her life was like paradise. She was happy while the happiness lasted. Okay?"  
He ruffled through the boy's hair and Lloyd nodded, trying not to cry from movement.

"Hang on a sec" Lloyd said and frowned. "why can I feel touching and so again?"  
"Because of the fever?"  
"Huh?"  
"You're not fully an angel yet, so you can still get sick and all. The fever lowered any signal from your Cruxis Crystal, so the angel transformation has stopped. So, you can feel until your fever is gone."  
"So I won't be able to feel anything anymore, once I'm healthy again?"  
"Yup."  
".. Then I wish I'll always have the fever." Lloyd said, pouting and Kratos laughed.

They landed softly on the terrace of Dirk's house.  
It was quiet and already night.  
Lloyd wanted to get in and lie in his old bed, but Kratos stopped him.  
".. A goodbye hug?" Lloyd grinned and hugged his father, who chuckled. Lloyd could feel it and rumble in the seraphim's chest.  
"Sort of." Kratos said and ruffled through Lloyd's hair. "Lloyd, there's something I want you to do."  
"What?"  
"Leave Cruxis."  
"What?!" Lloyd tilted his head up to look at his father.  
"Leave Cruxis. It's not good for you."  
"But, Dad .. you know that's impossible." Lloyd countered, frowning. "I mean, you ran away from Cruxis for, I guess, four years and you got forced back in."  
Kratos continued to ruffle his son's hair, his eyes having no message in them.  
"It'll work out for you. I promise." he whispered and kissed Lloyd's forehead. "Go to bed and sleep. You need rest."  
The seraphim wanted to take flight again, but Lloyd grabbed his cloak and growled.  
"I am not going to leave Cruxis!"  
Kratos frowned at his son.  
"Lloyd, don't you understand? Your whole personality is changing!" he snapped, trying to talk sense into the boy. "Those nightmares your having - Cruxis' fault; your urge to kill your friends - Cruxis' fault. And it all is because your personality is too different. You're too loyal to both sides, you're torn between the paths in front of you. Get it into your head, Lloyd, please!"  
Kratos put his hands on his son's shoulders and looked pleading into his face.  
"Don't try to stay loyal to Cruxis. Go back to your friends, save the worlds, forget everything that has happened! I don't want to see you suffer .."  
Lloyd stared at his father, who let his head hang in dispair.  
"I know that you want my best for me." he finally said. "But, Dad, I am going to stay in Cruxis."  
"Lloyd!"  
"I am going to stay in Cruxis!" Lloyd snapped, looking dead-serious. "Because I won't let you stay in it. Either we both go out or we both stay."  
Kratos was surprised and finally, after the first shock, he smirked.  
"Fine .. I knew you were a stubborn one when I first saw you." he said and patted Lloyd's shoulders. and left.  
Lloyd sighed and went into the house, lying down in his old bed.

His father wanted him to leave .. but that was impossible.  
Cruxis was either a life-time or death organization.  
And Lloyd had been serious.  
If either of them was to leave, they'd do it together or stay in it together.  
Even if it meant that Lloyd was continuing to lie to his friends.  
And he'd probably end up killing one of them ..

He was flying.  
He knew this place. It was Derris Quaran.  
Lloyd didn't recognize the clothes he was wearing. It was a kind of white robe that got tied up around the waist with a wide, golden sash.  
Although Lloyd had only been once down this glowing path, he knew it led to Yggdrasill's room.  
But why he was going over there, he didn't know.  
He flew up to the ceiling and watched the scenery below.  
The flowery seed, the Eternal Seed was resting in it's place, Martel tied to it.  
Yggdrasill turned around and smiled sinister.  
Kratos had just entered.  
"What is it, Kratos? It's not often that you ask for an audience in the middle of the night."  
The seraphim clenched his fists and stared at Yggdrasill, not bothering to bow down or anything like that.  
"Lloyd is going to leave Cruxis."  
What?_  
_"Pardon?"  
"I said, Lloyd is going to leave Cruxis. He will no longer do your bidding or any request of yours. He's free now."  
Lloyd flew down to his father, indignated.  
Dad, I told you, I'm going to stay or we both go out! Hey, listen to me!  
Yggdrasill looked taken back .. and then laughed.  
"Ah, Kratos, you amuse me every time. Lloyd leaving Cruxis." Yggdrasill clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Ridiculous! You know the punishment that those get, that want to leave. I mean, you got it yourself eighteen years ago."  
"I know." Kratos said, his voice as steady as a rock. No wavering or trembling.  
"So, if the boy wishes to leave, he shall come here and get the punishment."  
"He's not coming. I told you, he's left Cruxis and will not come back."  
"He will still receive the punishment!"  
"He won't! I'll take it for him."  
Yggdrasill's catlike eyes widened and then he laughed again.  
"Remember the pain you were in, for months as far as I remember, the first time around?"  
Kratos was silent.  
"I don't think that you'll survive, even you, who has the Aionis completely absorbed in his body."  
Kratos remained silent and then glared at Yggdrasill.  
Lloyd looked quickly between the two, wondering what to do.  
"Get it over with."  
"Very well .." Yggdrasill said, shrugging his shoulders.  
Don't!  
Yggdrasill held his stretched hands towards Kratos, Lloyd hurrying infront of his father to catch the punishment, whatever it was, but didn't feel it.  
Instead, Kratos flinched and started to yell his lungs out, kneeling onto the floor and shaking with unseen pain.  
Dad!!

"Lloyd, Lloyd, wake up!"  
The boy opened his eyes quickly and panted heavily.  
He was drenched in sweat once more and he looked to the side.  
Everyone was up, staring in his face, the closest being Refill, Collet and Genius.  
"Lloyd? You hear me?" Refill asked. "You had a nightmare."  
Mechanically, Lloyd shook his head.  
"That .. no dream .." he muttered and sat up, his Cruxis Clothes sticking to him. "I .. need to .. go .."  
"Lloyd, where are you going-stay here!" Refill bade him, seeing how he opened the door to the terrace and a cold breeze swept in.  
That was definitely no dream. Kratos' scream was too real for that.  
Perhaps his mana had left him to show him that he had to rescue his father.  
"Lloyd, you've got forty degrees fever, you can't go. Let alone fly!"  
Lloyd stretched his wings, took a deep breath.  
He knew it. He could fly. His wings were aching for it and Lloyd had a destination to go to.  
He lept off and flew over the forest, his friends - and even distinctly his adoptive father - calling out for him.  
He had to go.  
And he had to hurry-damn that fever. It may be great to feel again, but it was more of a bother than help.  
Lloyd still had the image of his father kneeling on the floor and yelling in his mind.  
Faster! Faster!  
He urged the fastest speed out of his wings, felt a curve going along his side and then it got dark.

**Cat-Alin: **This is such a weird story now.**  
Shihna: **So?**  
Cat-Alin: **I'm seriously thinking how I'm gonna make everything work out. And I think .. yeah, the group met Mithos after Shadow. Or else, Lloyd would've met him before ..**  
Shihna: **And that would've been bad?**  
Cat-Alin: **Well, yeah.**  
Shihna: **Dear Readers, reviews, please?


	15. Collet's sickness

**Cat-Alin: **And, again, I wake up and feel like spending my entire day on this story.**  
Shihna: **You're neglecting your other stories, you know.**  
Cat-Alin: **I know .. but I don't want to translate Kratos' Life, I don't want to go on with Absolute Randomness - I'm not perverted enough in a mood - and the Anthology One Shots are not very popular.**  
Shihna: **Whatever .. Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the Animation. If she did, there would've been a lot more Anime Sequences in the Game.

"Lloyd! Lloyd!" Collet called out, seeing how the figure of the angel fell. "Oh no ..!"  
"Calm down, Collet." Refill said, taking charge and keeping her cool. "Collet, you being the only other angel, fly over the forest and search for a sign of him from above."  
Collet nodded, took her pink wings out and flew off.  
"Zelos, Regal, you go into the forest and search on the grounds." The two men ran off. "Genius, run over to Phaidra and ask her for an emergency kit."  
The boy nodded as well and ran off.  
The half-elf woman turned to the remaining ones - Presea, Shihna and Dirk.  
"We'll have to wait here for them. Anybody know why he could've gone mad because of a dream?"  
They shook their heads.  
Refill started to think, if anything happened.  
"He followed Kratos out, after we came here, didn't he?" Shihna asked.  
"Yes .. but I don't really think that Kratos would do anything to Lloyd. I mean, he's his father after all. And what would it bring to get Lloyd away from us in the night?"  
"Perhaps Kratos-san didn't do anything to Lloyd-san, but Lloyd-san probably thought that his dream was real?" Presea suggested and they all seemed to agree to that.  
"But what did he dream?" Refill wondered. "Anybody remember how it started?"  
"Well," the summoner pondered, getting a bit red in the face. "he first seemed to toss around and moan. Sort of like Zelos with his damn floozies."  
"I was sleeping lightly, so I went to Lloyd-san and checked if everything was alright." Presea told them. "I wasn't able to wake him, so I went to wake you, Sensei, remember?"  
"Yes .. yes .. I wasn't able to wake him either. He seemed to be in severe pain." the half-elf kept wondering. "I think he mumbled something about his father leaving him and something about Cruxis."  
"And something about some sort of punishment .." Shihna frowned. "How did you managa to wake him up in the end?"  
"I didn't really. I may have shook him, but his reaction came a few seconds later. Either he got himself out of it or it was just when the dream ended."  
The door downstairs knocked open and they all thundered down the steps.  
"We got him!" Zelos panted, holding Lloyd's feet, while Regal held the other end. "He's out cold."  
"He was at the entrance of the forest on the Iselia side and he fractured his elbow, probably his whole arm." Regal mumbled and they lay Lloyd back on his bed, a few seconds later Collet came in.  
She had seen Regal and Zelos carrying something and knew it must've been Lloyd.

Why wasn't he in Welgaia already?  
He was flying over Triet, it wasn't that far off anymore.  
He had to hurry!  
Hurry to his father, who was taking his pain for him.

"That elbow sure is fractured." Refill said, after examening the unconscious Lloyd's right arm.  
Genius stormed into the room, panting heavily and holding out a little emergency kit.  
"I .. got it .." he sighed and sat down while Refill finished examening Lloyd's arm.  
"He's completely drenched." she said, feelig his head. "No other way around it. If he keeps them on, he'll never get better."  
In a quick whisk she took the Cruxis Clothes off of Lloyd, him now only lying in bed in his underpants. Refill bandaged Lloyd's arm quickly, not bothering with the sight.  
Lloyd flinched.  
"Hurry ... Dad, Danger .." he mumbled, barely moving his lips.  
"So, he's worried about his father?" Shihna asked, standing at the window, not looking at Lloyd.  
"Most likely. Perhaps he had a nightmare about him." Refill wondered. "Of course, we can't check on Kratos, if he's in real danger or not. He's probably on Derris Quaran and we have no idea how to get there."  
"Argh, why aren't the right men every there when you need them!?" Shihna cursed.  
Refill saw the weird wristwatch on Lloyd's wrist and took it off. It had a message on it.  
'_Is something wrong, Lloyd?_'  
"So this _is_ a communication device!" she called out and looking at it intently, to see how to send a message.  
'_Yes, this is a device for communication. Is something wrong?_'  
"Uh .." Refill mumbled. "Lloyd has had a hallucination. Or something like that. Broke his arm and is unconscious."  
'_Fine, I'll come and check on him._'

True to his message, Kratos arrived on the terrace a few minutes later and came in.  
"So, what's wrong?" he asked.  
Refill started a bit.  
"Oh, you're here. Well, Lloyd had a nightmare-"  
"Again .."  
"Apparently, yes. And it seems to have concerned you and he tried to fly to .. wherever you were and rescue you, I think. He lost conscious in the middle of his flight and fell on the ground."  
Kratos sighed deeply.  
"That boy can't be left alone for a minute." he said and went to the edge of the bed and looked at his son, who was still sweating a lot and seemed in pain. "What happened to his clothes?"  
"They were drenched, so I took them off." Refill answered. "Otherwise, he would keep that fever of his longer."  
"Hm." Kratos went. "Alright. You people go back to sleep, I can watch out for Lloyd until morning."  
They all muttered this or that and left the room, only Refill stayed there.  
She held um the wristwatch.  
"So, you gave this to Lloyd."  
"Indeed I did." Kratos answered and leaned back, crossing his arms and legs.  
Refill copied him.  
"For communication?"  
"Yes."  
"What were you trying to do? Spy on us? On your own behalf or because your dear Yggdrasill ordered it?"  
"I merely wanted to stay in contact with my son."  
"Hm .." Refill looked at him, the doubt coming up. "Then why didn't you have more contact with him, while you were still the Unknown Enemy?"  
"I did." Kratos shrugged his shoulders. "And afterwards, before I sent him back to you, I gave him that device to keep in contact."  
"But you were informed about our movements?"  
"Yes."  
"And you tried to stop us." she said, remembering the talk right before the Light Altar. "Because you knew what was going to happen?"  
"I knew that the cage around the Eternal Seed was imporant for the stability of the two worlds - not just for Martel's resurrection."  
They continued to have a discussion, Refill asking for Details, Kratos giving her tiny ones, always making sure that he wouldn't blow Lloyd's cover.

He heard a familiar voice .. and it was the voice that helped him.  
He had been looking for this person.  
Thank Martel that he was okay and not dead ..

Refill stopped her sentence, looking a bit surprised, when Lloyd, still asleep, crawled a bit closer to Kratos and put his head onto his lap, one of his arms as another pillow.  
"He seems to have missed you a lot in his life." she said instead and Kratos blushed just a tiny bit. "Well, I'll leave it be and get some rest. We need to find out more about a way to cure Collet."

Lloyd yawned and sat up.  
"Morning."  
"Morning .." Lloyd mumbled and then looked at the person. "Dad. Where am I? Did I make it to Derris Quaran?"  
"No, you fainted and fell into the forest. Why were you so intent on going there?"  
"Um .. well .." Lloyd stuttered and told his father about the dream he had. "And I had this feeling that it wasn't a dream. I knew it was real, so I wanted to hurry over and save you."  
Kratos knocked him gently on the head.  
"You dork." he sighed. "I'm of course not pleased or happy that you're staying in Cruxis for my sake. But I promise you, I won't tell Yggdrasill that you left. Especially not if it's a lie."  
"Okay .." the boy said and rubbed his head. Then he noticed his lack of clothes. "Why am I half-naked? Did Zelos confuse me for a girl .. again?"  
"No. Refill-san took your clothes off."  
"She did WHAT!?"  
The others came in just then.  
"Well, we can hear that you're awake." Refill noted.  
"Lloyd! Lloyd, are you feeling okay? How's your arm?" Collet asked and asked, clinging to his chest.  
"Collet, that's not a good Idea. I smell like testosterone." Lloyd mumbled, but Collet didn't let go.

After Lloyd managed to peel Collet off again and after drying off, his father having shoved him into the river.  
He got dressed again, his normal red clothes, and they decided to go over to Tethe'alla.  
"So, where are we going to now?"  
"To Altessta."  
They landed in front of the old dwarf's cave-house and went in.  
"Hello." Tabatha greeted them and they greeted back.  
"Mithos, what's wrong?" Genius asked worried. "You're hurt!"  
"Ah, not that bad." Mithos, a young boy with blond hair calmed him down.  
Lloyd frowned.

The Mana from that boy seemed so familiar.  
Like he had felt it around Welgaia the whole time ..  
He just couldn't place him that well ..

"Nice to meet you." Mithos said and extended his hand to Lloyd. "I'm Mithos."  
"Uh, I'm Lloyd. Lloyd Irving." Lloyd took his hand and a great wave of electricity seemed to course from his fingers over his whole body.  
It was overwhelming!  
The boy felt his energy leaving him and he knelt down. Mithos bent down.  
"Are you okay?" he asked and grinned. "You recognize me yet?"  
"Y-Yggdrasill-sama .." Lloyd mumbled and Mithos grinned. "Why ..?"  
"To watch over them. And I can tell you, if you bust me, I will bust you." Mithos whispered and the mad glance in his eyes came back. "I think they'll be more shocked over your real position than mine .."  
The others bent down to Lloyd.  
"Are you okay?"  
"Yeah .. yeah, I just felt dizzy for a second." Lloyd said and got back up. "But thanks for worrying, Guys. And Mithos."  
Mithos and Lloyd glared at each other, but smirked a bit.  
"Anyway, Mithos, is Altessta there?"  
Mithos shook his head.  
"No. He went away with Tabatha to get some herbs of some kind. Why?" he asked.  
"Oh, we just needed to ask him something about a physical condition .." Refill countered, avoiding the real reason.  
"Well, why not check Sybak's library? They have almost everything there."  
"You're right, Mithos. Hey, why not come with us? Maybe you could help us look for it?" Genius asked, wanting to spend some time with him.  
"I'd love to." Mithos smiled. "But with Tabatha-san and Altessta-san gone, I'm supposed to watch over the place. But if you need any more help, just come by."  
They said their goodbyes and left for Sybak over at the other side of the Gaorrachia forest.

"Alright, this is the part with the medicine and illnesses. Everybody grab a book and start reading." Refill told them and they each took one out and started to read.  
Lloyd frowned and closed his book after a few pages.  
He knew that he wouldn't find it anywhere in this book.  
It wasn't in any of the other ones for medicine, for sure.  
He had read it in a legend one.  
He put the book back and searched for the 'Legends' shelf.  
Lloyd didn't see one, but he saw a tiny shelf with a few books on it and he recognized the signs.  
They were written in angel-language.  
He took one out, sat back down at the big table and read.

Refill sighed and put her book back.  
"Well, that's all the medicine ones and they didn't say anything about Collet's symptoms."  
The others were out of ideas where to look as well and Refill frowned when she saw Lloyd in the middle of a book.  
Lloyd was frowning, trying to read the book fluently, but there were some alterations of the letters he had learned, so it took him some time to translate and understand them.  
"Lloyd?" Refill asked and stepped next to him, recognizing the angel language in the book. "You can read that?"  
Lloyd started and looked up.  
"What, Sensei?"  
"You can read angel language?"  
"Yes." he answered and wondered if it sounded suspiscious. "Kratos taught me."  
Refill nodded and went to the others, Lloyd continued to read.

"Found it!"  
The group had been sitting in chairs close to Lloyd, waiting for him to find something.  
Towards the end of the book he had found something.  
He pushed it a bit to the middle and pointed at some very flourish letters.  
"Here it is. The symptoms are green scaleskin and if it's not stopped, well .. the sick one turns into a giant exsphere .."  
"And what's it called?" Refill asked. She could read some angel language as well, but not the flourished ones.  
"Pretty hard to pronounce in angel language. But translated it basically means 'Chronical Angelus Crystalus Inofficium'."  
"The what what?" Zelos asked, holding his red curls.  
"Whatever." Lloyd said, rolling his eyes.  
"Does it say what it needs for a cure?"  
Lloyd stared at the book again, finishing the page.  
"The horn of a unicorn it says, but that doesn't seem powerful enough to nullify it. It would only slow the process down."  
"Maybe the unicorn itself is needed." Shihna suggested, remembering what the unicorn had said before it had died."  
"How about we check out the royal archive of documents?" Zelos said. "It should say something about that. During the Ancient War, the Hero Mithos gave the Tethe'allan King some important documents."

So they went back to Meltokyo and discovered the whole plot of the pope's plan and healed the king who had been poisoned.  
They got access to the document archive and first thing that happened, was that Collet tripped and the book they needed fell to their feet.  
"Is this lucky or unlucky?" Lloyd wondered, while Refill went through the pages.  
"Mana leaf herb ... Mana Fragment ... Zircon ..." she mumbled. "Zircon .. where could we get that?"  
"My firm works with Zircon. If we ask where the last shipment was, we might get some." Regal offered and they agreed to go there as soon as possible.  
"What about Mana leaf herb? That doesn't sound like it's everywhere."  
"Heimdall." Lloyd said, crossing his arms. "They might give us some if we ask kindly. But first of all, we don't have permission to enter the Ymir Forest and we have half-elves. They hate them."  
"Again that .." Genius sighed. "Why do they hate half-elves so much?"  
"They're basically humans with magical powers." Lloyd explained. "And since elves and humans have such different ways of teaching and knowledge, they grow up differently. Elves are afraid that half-elves could abuse their magical powers for destruction. And then the elves would be blamed of course, because their beauty and eternal youth is supposed to be so seductive."  
"Wow, Lloyd, how did you come up with that-?" Refill asked, but got interupted of Zelos' whistle.  
"Come on, let's go to the elves-village! I gotta see those pretty elf-ladies with my own, beautiful, bright blue eyes!"  
Lloyd grabbed a thick book and hit Zelos over the head with it.  
"Ow! That hurt, buddy! Why'd you do that? You ruined my hairdo!"  
"Hormon-Moron, listen. Without a permission to enter the Ymir Forest we won't be able to get even close to the village." Lloyd said, putting the book back. "And Sensei and Genius won't be able to enter, even if we have the permission."  
"Oh, the permission is easy!" Zelos grinned and went out, looking around. "Ah, Princess Hilda! Sweet, gorgeous, godess with the hair of the sun's light, wait a minute!"  
They all went out, Lloyd closing the door behind him and watched.  
Zelos was holding Hilda's arm, his other arm was around her waist and he was swaying her about.  
"Dearest Princess of them all, would you give us the high honor of asking your father to write us a permission to enter the Ymir Forest?" he asked in a deep voice and looked at her in a rather private way.  
"Oh dear, Chosen, please stop!" Hilda chuckled, especially when Zelos kissed her neck. "I'm getting dizzy!"  
On and on that little play went for a few minutes, everybody watching in awe. Shihna looked rather annoyed by the second.  
Zelos had persuaded her and she went to her father and came back a few minutes later, a letter in her hand.  
"Here, Chosen. I hope it will be of use to you."  
"It is already, the moment you have given it to my from your tiny, smooth hand."  
Hilda chuckled again, hiding her face behind her fan and left them.  
Zelos sighed and grinned.  
"Piece of cake."  
"Piece of cake you're hair! You damn Lust-Addict!" Shihna yelled and started to chase Zelos around the castle with her ofudas.

They decided to first go over to Altamira, where Regal's firm was, to find out where the last Zircon shipment was.  
Regal was about to find out, when the Document vanished.  
"What is this ..?" a familiar ninja smirked.  
"Kuchinawa, give it back!" Shihna hissed at him.  
"No!"  
"Damn you!" Shihna hissed. "I know you hate me, but you can't just-"  
"I can and will."  
"Fine, there's only one way to solve this then. Kuchinawa, I-"  
"Don't do it, Shihna-chan!" Zelos called out and hugged her from behind. "Don't let him kill you. I told you already that that wouldn't solve anything!"  
"I'm not going to." Shihna said calmly and pushed Zelos carefully away and stepped to Kuchinawa. "Kuchinawa, I challenge you to a Duel."  
"Fine. You know where you'll find me." Kuchinawa said and wanted to poof away.  
"Hang on! Give the document back."  
"This is my reassurement that you'll come."  
"We need it or Collet might die!" Shihna said and handed him a bell she had tied around her wrist. "Take this instead."  
Kuchinawa took it and looked at it.  
"What is it?"  
"Corrine's bell .. it's a memory." Shihna admitted quietly and got the paper back from Kuchinawa.  
"Fine. If you will not appear, I shall destroy this bell!" and he poofed away.  
"I'm sorry, Shihna .." Collet sighed. "Now you'll have to fight him for Corrine's bell because of me."  
"Nah, it's okay. I can't run away forever." Shihna said and studied the paper. "Last shipment was to Sybak."

And they went back to Sybak, getting let back into the Research Institute because somebody had thought that when Collet looked angry at some guards with her wings out, that she was in fact a ten feet tall angel who would eat everybody who was in their way.  
"You still have some Zircon left from Lezareno Company?" Refill asked and the researcher nodded, going into a room and giving her some. "Thank you."  
After that little intermezzo, they left Sybak and stopped.  
"Where is the Ymir Forest located?" Refill asked.  
"South of the Tower of Salvation." Zelos answered. "We'll have to go there later on anyway."  
"Why?"  
"Because Mana Fragments are only located on Derris Quaran." Lloyd told him. "And don't even think it, Sensei." he stopped his teacher. "Kratos may be a good contact, but I don't think he'll be able to grab a Manafragment and not get a severe punishment from Yggdrasil-s-"  
He stopped himself, before he gave his boss the fitting title.  
Nobody wondered about it and boarded their rheairds to the Ymir Forest.

"Halt! Who goes there?" the guards at the entrance of the Forest stopped them.  
Lloyd showed them the permission from the king and they were let pass, walking over the boardwalk.  
Collet stopped a few times to gaze into the clear, crystalblue water and commenting how pretty this place was.  
A few meters before the entrance of the village, a little boy was standing, his pointy ears indicating tha the was an elf.  
"Hi, could you let us through, please?" Collet asked the boy sweetly.  
He shook his head. "N-no."  
"Brat!" Zelos hissed, earning a frown from Shihna.  
"Why not?"  
The boy was silent.  
"Are you hurt?" Collet asked.  
The boy shook his head again. "B-but my mom is .."  
"What's wrong with her?"  
"S-she's sick .." the elf stuttered. "I .. I heard that the Ymir Fruit would heal her, but .. but there are so many monsters here and I didn't dare to .. to look for it."  
"Oh, we can look for it." Collet offered. "Would you let us through if we bring you the fruit?"  
The boy nodded his head.  
"Any idea where the Fruit is?" Shihna asked.  
"N-no, but-"  
"How the hell are _we_ supposed to find it then!?" Zelos snapped and the boy flinched.  
Lloyd grabbed Zelos' collar and shoved him into the water, then he looked at the boy.  
"The Jerk is quiet now. But what?" he asked, looking kind.  
"I .. I heard that there are butterflies. Loads and loads of butterflies where the fruit is." the elven boy said, looking happy at the though of a swarm of butterflies.  
"Good, we'll look for it."  
"Ah, Lloydie-boy, you ruined my hair again!" Zelos whined, spitting some water out, aiming for Lloyd but missing.  
Lloyd glared at Zelos and knelt down.  
"Wanna be put into a bodybag?"  
".. Nevermind." Zelos said and heaved himself out of the water, dripping with the same liquid.  
Lloyd sighed and looked around, searching for butterflies. His eyesight was much better than before.  
He actually felt like his fever was gone, but sometimes he still felt the heat coursing through his body.  
At a tree several meters away, he saw a swarm of blue, purple, pink, yellow and white butterflies flattering around a tree.  
"I'll be right back." he said, took his wings out and flew over, floating in midair, looking at the tree.  
A rustle came from the tree and something hung, head down, from it.  
"Ah!" Lloyd wanted to grab it, whatever it was and his wrist got caught by another hand. ".. Dad!"  
"Not nice to grab somebody out of nowhere."  
"Geez, don't scare me like that ever again!" Lloyd breathed, his eyes wide. "What are you doing here, anyway?"  
"Checking on how you're doing."  
"I'm fine. Just a little dizzy. Nothing else." he answered. "Anyway, since you're hanging in that tree, do you happen to know if this one carries Ymir Fruits?"  
Kratos picked a bright red fruit off. "Catch."  
It hit Lloyd in the chest, the boy swayed and fell into the water, the fruit in his fist. He got his head up and coughed.  
"What was that for?"  
Kratos shrugged his shoulders and disappeared into the tree again, Lloyd sighing and shaking his head.

"Lloyd, why are you so wet?" Refill asked, seeing how Lloyd was flying back and was dripping.  
"Fell into the water." the boy muttered.  
"Haha!" Zelos grinned, pointing at him.  
Lloyd shoved Zelos back into the water.  
"I just got dry, you bastard!" Zelos snapped at him and Lloyd ignored him, handing the boy the fruit.  
"You look very much like Kratos-san with your hair hanging low, Lloyd-san." Presea noticed and Lloyd looked away, a bit embarassed.  
"Here you go."  
"Thank you! I was always told that humans are mean. Thank you so much!" the boy said, taking the fruit from Lloyd. "Here, you take this as a thankyou."  
Lloyd got a piece of metal.  
"Wow, Lloyd, you and Collet are going to be good parents-Hah, you missed!" Zelos teased them and dodged an apple Lloyd threw at him. But an orange hit him on the forehead for that.  
They entered the village, or wanted to, when the guards stopped them.  
"Halt! Half-elves are not allowed in!" he said, glareing at Refill and Genius.  
Shihna wanted to tell them where to get off, but Refill calmed her.  
"No problem. Genius and I will wait here for you."  
"Also, it is forbidden to say anything concerning Mithos as a Hero."  
"And why would we think that, anyway .." Lloyd mumbled and asked them for the way to the Elder's house.

"Who are you?" the elven Elder asked.  
"We're from Sylvarant. This is Sylvarant's Chosen." Lloyd said, nodding at Collet. "We're here to ask for some Manaleaf herb."  
"I'm sorry, but we can't just give Manaleaf herb to every person asking for it." the Elder told them.  
Lloyd felt hot again and he glared at the Elder.  
"We need it to cure her sickness."  
"And which one is that?"  
Lloyd said it, but it wasn't the one he told the group. He pronounced it entirely different and knew it was the angel language he said.  
"I see .. and you are so much like him .." the Elder said, taking in Lloyd's facial expression. He gave him his staff. "Show this to the guard at the Latheon Gorge south of here and he'll let you pass."  
Lloyd took it and they left Heimdall again, rejoining with Refill and Genius.

After getting past the guard in the Latheon Gorge, they wondered how to get up to the top.  
Lloyd sighed.  
"Collet, help me? Each of us takes one of the group and fly the to the top." he suggested and the two winged people started their work.  
The angels were a bit exhausted after finishing their job and went into the house.  
The old man turned their way. Lloyd noticed quickly that he was blind.  
"You are searching for something, are you not?"  
"Yes, we would like to know if you could give us some Manaleaf herb?"  
".. It's in a cave close to here. But hard to get." the man said. "Follow me and I'll show you."  
They followed him to a gate he opened.  
"The cave is this way. Once you have what you got, come back to me."  
The group thanked him and went the way until they got to a gap that led to the waterfall.  
"Where is there a cave here?" Shihna wondered and Lloyd went a step to the left.  
"It's behind it." he said and pointed. ".. Genius, what's your highest Ice-Spell?"  
"Huh? Um .. Absolute."  
"Could you cast it onto the waterfall? Freeze it for a while until we get over there."  
Genius nodded and concentrated on freezing the waterfall.  
".. _Absolute!_" Cracking and cringing, the waterfall froze and stood still.  
"Perfect!"  
"That was very good, Genius." Presea complimented him and Genius went red.  
"Now getting over will be easy." Lloyd said.  
"And how?"  
Lloyd rolled his eyes and jumped, landing safely on the gap. "Easy."  
One by one, Zelos, Regal, Presea and Refill jumped over. Collet flew and Shihna poofed her way over, just Genius remained on the other side.  
"You all know I'm no good at sports." he said and sighed. "I won't make it."  
"Try at least, Genius." Refill said, trying to motivate him.  
"Yes, Genius, you can do it!"  
"I know I'll fall .."  
"Come on, Brat! You do it! And if you trip at the edge, well, we'll catch ya. You can trust us." Zelos said and Genius gulped, taking a run and jumped.  
He almost made it, but he still fell.  
"Genius!" Refill yelled, but Lloyd already jumped down, taking his wings out and grabbing Genius' hand, flying back up.  
The others went in, Refill thanked Lloyd dearly before going in herself.  
"Th-Thanks, Lloyd." Genius stuttered.  
"It's nothing. Take it as atoning for what I did in Shadow's Temple."  
"Lloyd, I don't know if Kratos-san told you, but .." Genius said and looked at his friend. "I'm not angry or so at you for that."  
"I know .." Lloyd sighed and looked at the imprint the string had done on Genius' throat. He stroked over it with his finger. "I'm really sorry for doing that."  
"No problem!" Genius said and grinned. "Come on, let's go in and help heal Collet."  
They both went in, seeing the others in a fight with a huge plant.  
"You've got to be kidding .." Lloyd mumbled and dodged one of the Plant's roots. "What are we going to fight next? A huge, mooing cow?!"

Genius was using his fire spells, Shihna kept summoning Ifrit and Refill healed, while the others were hitting the Plant with their weapons.  
Lloyd got thrown back a few meters to the magicians in the back and sat up, growling.  
That plant was such a bother!  
His blood boiled and he cursed under his breath, getting up and wanting to charge again, stopping.  
He frowned.  
He felt like his chest was burning. But not with anger.  
With a power he hadn't had before.  
He concentrated, his eyebrows together.  
"_Rain down on the enemy and nullify the existence .._" he muttered, the power coursing through his whole body. "Die! _Judgement!!_"  
The light rain down onto the Plant and after a few hits of the light and from Zelos, Presea and Regal, it disappaered.  
Everybody stared at Lloyd for a second, until Collet noticed that the manaleaf herb was infront of them.  
"Oh, look!" she said and they all took their eyes off of Lloyd and looked at the herb. Collet took some and smiled.  
They left the cave and jumped the gap again, Genius being carried volunteerely by Collet this time, and the elven boy used a Firespell to melt the ice on the waterfall and they retreated to the man's house.  
Refill stopped Lloyd a few steps beforehand. "What was that?"  
"I dunno!" Lloyd whispered back. "I just suddenly knew how to use that spell."  
She frowned. "Could your ability to use magic come from the Aionis?"  
"I think so. I .. I heard somewhere before that Aionis could enhance the magic of elves or half-elves and give humans the ability to use magic at all." Lloyd mumbled, remembering what Kratos had told him.  
He sincerely hoped that Kratos wasn't watching a few minutes ago.  
He'd have to do some explaining.  
"It enhances the ability or gives the ability .. very interesting .." Refill mumbled and wrote on her paper again, then they followed the others inside.

"I can tell you got what you wanted." the man said. "And you still have a way to go. Such a big goal, just like the Hero Mithos."  
"Hang on, I thought it wasn't allowed to mention 'Mithos the Hero' in Heimdall." Zelos said.  
"This isn't Heimdall." the man smirked. "I am known as the Storyteller of Heimdall. Young ones come to me when they're about to reach age and I tell them the stories of Heimdall and the world."  
"But why is Mithos' name forbidden in Heimdall?"  
"He was a half-elf, for sure!" Genius spat.  
"Mithos the Hero? A half-elf? Yeah, right, Brat."  
"No, it's true." the Storyteller said and Zelos' chin sank. "Mithos was born in Heimdall and because of his doing, he got banned later on."  
"But what is it he did?" Refill asked.  
"He betrayed Origin's trust. And the elves hated it that he tried to change the world."  
Lloyd frowned. He didn't like where this was going.  
But what was mostly wondering him was something else ..  
He sighed and left the house, leaning against the tree outside.

Lloyd had gotten used to seeing the mana of the others around their figures all the time.  
But he was wondering what was it with Zelos'?  
It felt sort of familiar .. like he had seen it before or had spent a lot of time with a person with that kind of mana.  
He couldn't place it ..  
Could it be that he had met Zelos before?  
Like, when he was younger?  
But that would mean that either his mother or his father would know him.

"Lloyd! Are you there?"  
The boy jumped out of his thoughts and looked at the others.  
"You won't believe what we heard!" Genius said and told him how the Storyteller told them that Mithos the Hero was actually Yggdrasill and that Martel was his sister. And Yuan and Kratos had been their companions, which made all of them over fourthousand years old!  
Lloyd looked away.  
"You knew that, didn't you?" Refill asked him and Lloyd nodded.  
"Yeah. Kratos told me that he was actually over fourthousand years old .." he sighed. "And it's a good explanation. I mean, he's actually 28, how could he have produced me, seeing as how I'm almost eighteen."  
"Well, he started to screw early and your Mom must've had a real hang for small guys." Zelos grinned.  
Lloyd grabbed him by the collar and hung him over the cliff .. and let go.  
"Youuuuu Baastuuuuuuuurd!!" Zelos yelled when he got down.  
Everybody stared.  
"He'll be fine." Lloyd said and they made their way down, which was much easier.  
"Wow, Zelos, you really ARE alright!?" Genius wondered when they were downstairs and Zelos was next to the guard, waving.  
"Oh well, Buddy here," he said and pointed at Lloyd. "got me so close to the edge that I actually slid down, I only slit my shoulder open. Collet, please kiss it Okay, again!"  
Lloyd hit him on the head.  
"We've got no time for flirting, come on!"  
"Ow .. okay, okay .." Zelos sighed. "We need to go to the Tower of Salvation, right? Well, we'll need my Cruxis Crystal. And THAT I left with a woman in the abbey."  
"Typical, you and your floozies."  
Zelos was silent and told them where the Abbey was.

"Hello, pretty!" Zelos greeted a priest dressed woman. "Is she here?"  
"Yes, that way." the woman said, blushing a bit and pointed to a door.  
Zelos opened the door.  
"Heee-lloooo, Sista!"  
A girl wirled around with short red hair and frowned.  
"Oh, it's you." she said and turned back again. "What do you want?"  
"The Cruxis Crystal I gave you. I need it."  
The girl threw it over. "It belongs to the Chosen, so it should stay there."  
"Oh, you meant your sister .." Shihna said.  
"Sister?" Lloyd asked back.  
"Little sister. Seles."  
"Whatever you say, tiny one. See ya, seeing as how I'm still hated."  
"W-wait, O-nii-"  
"Hmmmm?" Zelos went and turned around, smirking.  
".. Nothing! Go away!" Seles snapped.  
Zelos sighed and left, the others following him, Collet and Lloyd catching a 'Take Care' from Seles.  
"Ain't she a sweety?" Zelos asked.  
"She's not friendly .." Genius mumbled.  
"Well, she's sick most of the time and because of her mother she .. nevermind."  
"She said 'Take Care' before you left." Collet smiled and Zelos sighed.  
"I see .. well, let's go!"

They took their rheairds to the Tower of Salvation and Zelos went ahead, activating the stairs.  
They ascended them and Refill stared at the Tower.  
"Oh, I wonder how it's built .. Zelos, open the door!!" Refill snapped at him and Zelos laughed embarassed.  
He put his hand on the stone and the door opened.  
"Ahaha! Am I a Chosen or what?! Do I look cool or what!?"  
"Shove it and let's get in .." Lloyd sighed.  
"I wonder if something is wrong with Zelos-kun .." Presea mumbled.  
"Nah, he's just obnoxious like always. Come on."  
They went in and Lloyd paled for a moment.  
What to do? Once the angels would see him and call him 'Lloyd-sama' they'd find out!  
If he had a chance to tell his father to tell the angels to ignore him ..  
Hmm ..

**Cat-Alin: **Ehehe .. Nobody wondered about the 'Chosen, get off of that man!' in the last chapter?**  
Shihna: **What about it?**  
Cat-Alin: **Oh, just wondering. I mean, it shows that Zelos is gay. Or it should seem so.**  
Shihna: **Mhm?**  
Cat-Alin: **Oh yeah and I couldn't help it but let Lloyd use Zelos as the Comic Relief. Just the other way around it is, usually.**  
Shihna: **Dear Readers, reviews please? And you're pretty fast with uploading this, you know.**  
Cat-Alin: **It's so much fun to write this story!


	16. Busted!

**Cat-Alin: **Hey, Sexy Lady! Smell mah flowers?**  
Shihna: **WHAT!?**  
Cat-Alin: **Here! -shoves a blue pot with hibiskus flowers in it into her face- Ain't it pretty? I got it today!**  
Shihna: **Yes .. it's pink.**  
Cat-Alin: **I know .. I would've loved a violetish color, but Hibiskuses aren't violet. But it's pretty and smells nice!**  
Shihna: **You have to work for every flower to blosom.**  
Zelos: **-storms in- I'll help ya deflower it!**  
Shihna: **-kicks him away- Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the Animation. If she did, there would've been much more costumes in the game.

Lloyd frowned, thinking of a quick way to contact his father and make no angel call him by his title.  
But he had no time to rush off and tell his father without blowing his cover.  
And he'd do that anyway, if he'd get to Welgaia without preparation!  
He also didn't have a chance to get them to do their 'visit' to Welgaia later because Collet might die in that time.  
Dammit!!

"Lloyd, what are you spacing for?" Shihna called. "Come on, catch up!"  
The boy flinched and caught up, going with them to the main room.  
"Urgh ..!" Zelos went and looked away, covering his eyes. "This place is so ugly, I can't bare it!"  
"A really tragic sight .." Regal sighed, looking at the thousands of coffins floating around.  
".. Lloyd!"  
The boy jumped a foot, looking at his teacher.  
"Look!" she said and pointed at a broken pillar. "This was when Yggdrasill knocked you into it! But that must mean .. this is Sylvarant's Tower of Salvation!"  
"What?! And how exactly is that possible?" Shihna snapped.  
Kratos stepped from the altar and smirked.  
"The Tower of Salvation is the connection-point of the two worlds. There is only one, so, of course, they are identical."  
"Dad ..!" Lloyd called out. He managed to stop him from saying 'I am so happy to see you!'.  
Kratos looked directly at Collet.  
"We'll use you as Martel's vessel." he said. "With every chance we've got."  
"You're not going to get her!" Refill snapped and she, Zelos and Presea positioned themselves infront of the Chosen. "You have any idea what's going to happen to the worlds, if you keep sacrificing so many people for resurrecting one?"  
Kratos sneered and took his sword out.  
"If you won't give her volunteerily, I'll just take her!"

How could he tell his father the plan now?  
Argh, everything was starting to get too complicated!  
He needed some more time!  
He was trying to find out a way to get him and Kratos out of Cruxis and not to sacrifice Collet for the worlds.

Lloyd had his swords interlocked with Kratos' sword.  
It seemed as though they were straining to break them free, but in fact Lloyd tried to keep them together until he had warned his father.  
"Dad, no one" Lloyd whispered, hoping his father understood. "call me-"  
"_Air Thrust!_"  
The two broke free, jumping into opposite directions, the slashes of wind missing both of them.  
Genius cursed and dodged a spell Kratos sent towards him and returned to cast another strong one.

Genius was getting better at his spells.  
He didn't know if that was good or bad .. probably bad if they were ever on opposite sides .. which they were.  
Lloyd tried to think how else to tell Kratos, without it being too noticeable.

"Lloyd, behind you!" Shihna yelled and Lloyd felt a sting from his head and it run down his spine.  
"What ..?" Kratos whispered, grabbing one of Lloyd's arms, his sword still in the other.  
"by .. title .." Lloyd hissed and it went black again.

Lloyd opened his eyes again and stared directly into Zelos' bright blue ones.  
"Get off me, you Bisexual Bastard!" he snapped and punched Zelos' chin.  
"Ow, Buddy, what?"  
"You were on top of me again .." Lloyd growled and got up. "Where the heck are we, anyway?"  
"Welgaia." Genius said, who was sitting in a corner.  
"Kratos threw us into seperate cells after knocking us all unconscious." Regal told him. "And gave you an injection of something."  
Lloyd frowned and sighed.  
"Wonder what they're going to do with Collet-chan .." Zelos sighed, after gently checking if his gorgeous chin was alright.  
"Huh?"  
"Well, they want to do some operation or so on her" the Chosen said. "because of her sickness and then make her into the vessel."  
Lloyd paled a bit and felt angry afterwards.  
He had been so close to an idea and now it was about to be ruined!  
"Don't worry, Buddy, Collet-chan is still here." the Chosen montioned to the wall, where the next cell was located.  
Lloyd growled and kicked against the cell-door.  
It sprang wide open. It hadn't been really locked.  
Everybody stared wide-eyed.  
"Alright, good work, Lloyd-kun!" Zelos grinned. "Come on, let's blow this joint!"

They got the girls out of their cell as well and looked for a way out.  
There was a teleporter a few meters away.  
"Hang on, we can't leave right away." Refill warned them. "We need to get mana fragments."  
"But how to get them?" Collet wondered.  
"Ladys, could we get out of this prison area and then make a plan?" Zelos asked, shivering from the staleness of the area.  
They tried to use the teleporter, but it didn't do it's job.  
"Is it broken?" Collet asked.  
"No, it wouldn't be lit then." Refill told her. "Perhaps something is blocking the connectionspot?"  
"I'll go up and check!" Collet volunteered and took her pink wings out, flying off.  
"Hope the other angels won't chop her head off .." Lloyd mumbled.  
"What?"  
"Don't worry, they won't. She's an angel, after all." the boy corrected himself and sighed.  
"Why should they-?"  
"Is what Kratos told me." Lloyd said, shrugging his shoulders. "I only agreed to turn my Exsphere into a Cruxis Crystal, so I would get wings and be able to walk around on Welgaia without 'getting my head chopped off the minute I'm outside'. How Kratos put it."  
"Why should you wander around Welgaia?"

Holy Cow!  
He had just busted himself .. partly.  
Not good!

"Uh .." Lloyd stuttered and bashed his brain for a solution. "H-he probably knew what was happening with Collet .. and that we'd need to get to Welgaia."  
Refill nodded slowly when Collet appeared in front of them.  
"Hi!" she greeted them, smiled and waved. "The path's clear."  
They then used the now-working teleporter and stared outside of the little blocked off area.  
"Whoow .." Genius stared. "So many angels ..!"  
"No way around it .." Refill muttered and thought up a plan. "Alright. We'll pretend to be Collet's prisoners, because she's an angel .. perhaps even Lloyd's. He's got angel wings .."  
Shucks ..  
Refill gave Collet some white rope.  
"Help me. Alright, guys, prepare to be roped."  
Collet was tying Zelos' hands together.  
"Is that too tight?" she asked, worried.  
"No, make them tighter. I like it tight! OW!" Zelos flirted and got a boot-to-the-head from Shihna.  
Lloyd took a paper from his wingpack and lay it flat on the floor, studying it.  
"What's that?"  
"Map of Welgaia."  
"Why do you have it?"  
"Uh .. Snatched it out of Dad's pocket." Lloyd mumbled and tapped a place on the map. "This is some sort of storage, I think. Maybe they have Mana Fragments."  
And the weird looking group went on their way to the storage.

"No Mana Fragments to distribute. Leave." the guard-angel said.  
"Okay, we did our best, let's leave." Zelos sighed and got a smack from Lloyd for that.  
"No giving up hope, you limey!" he hissed and turned back to the guard.  
"You have humans with you?"  
"Exsphere research." Lloyd said. "But we need the Fragment for the ritual with the Chosen. We need to hurry." he sneered. "You know how Yggdrasill-sama can be, when he has to wait."  
The guard flinched, knowing and flew up, coming back down with a piece of silvery stone.  
"H-hurry and bring it to him!"  
Lloyd took it and they left again, looking for the exit.  
"There's a teleporter." Zelos nodded over to a big one.  
".. Nah, they want ID." Lloyd sighed, having a mental plan of the city.  
And they continued to hurry on.  
"Lloyd, I was amazed how easily you could say 'sama' to him." Refill said.  
"Um .. well, I just tried to sound as if I was an angel of Cruxis."  
Refill stopped, having spotted a huge computer, and rushed to it.  
"Sensei!"  
The others followed her.  
"This is a database. Perfect!" Refill went a slight ruin-mode and typed like mad, getting data and information on how Yggdrasill had a pact with Origin, what Derris Quaran actually was.  
Also, what kind of project Yggdrasill was doing and something very important about the Eternal Sword.  
"What does that mean?" Collet asked. " 'Especially made for Mithos, as a proof.'?"  
"Sort of like the rings Shihna gets when she made the pacts." Lloyd told her and pointed then to a little teleporter. "That should bring us outta here."

After stepping onto the teleporter, they found themselves on the higher altar, where Remiel had spilled the guts about the nature of the Worldregeneration Journey.  
"Look at that. Do you think that it could be the Eternal Sword?" Shihna asked, noticing the sword sticking in the middle.  
"No way!" Zelos snapped. "Nobody would leave a valuable sword like this in an unprotected place like this!"  
"But it looks very much like the shape we saw on the database." Refill mentioned.  
Zelos blinked.  
"Well, then, let's take it to Altessta and let him check it." he said, stepping closer to the sword.  
"That won't work, Zelos, you can't tou-"  
"Argh!" Zelos got thrown back by an invisible barrier and smashed against a pillar.  
"Told you so." Lloyd sighed. "Only the one with the pact of Origin will be able to get close."  
"Exactly! Good watching out, Lloyd-boy. Basically, only me and _maybe_ Kratos could touch it."  
Yggdrasill appeared before them, his wings flapping quietly.  
"I'm not surprised to see you here." he said, looking at everybody. "It was pretty clear that you were going to run off. Especially since Kratos didn't lock the cells."  
"He didn't!?"  
Yggdrasill's eyes went over to Lloyd and he sneered.  
"Of course not. Wasn't the reason obvious? Oh well, never mind." the angel sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "Hand over 'Collet' now, I need her to get Martel back."  
"No!" The others, except for Lloyd who hesitated for a second, stepped infront of Collet.  
"We won't let you have her!" Refill spat. "Why should we, anyway? You'll basically kill her!"  
"Oh .. No, I won't. I'll just remove her soul and use her body to resurrect Martel. So, in a way, she's going to share the same body with Martel."  
"Why are you so intent on resurrecting Martel!?" the half-elf woman snapped. "You let the legends say how wonderful and nice and forgiving she is. But I don't think she'll forgive you that easy when she finds out that you sacrificed several thousands of lives, to just get her back!?"  
Yggdrasill shook his head.  
"Martel will be happy when she finds out my plan on making everything better." he said and smiled an eery smile. "If every person gets an exsphere and becomes lifeless, everyone will be the same. Neither elves, nor humans will look down on the half-elves. We'll live together in peace."  
Genius' eyes went wide.  
"You mean .." he stepped forwards. "No one will turn away in disgust when they find out my nature? No one will decline us help? We'd be treated like anybody else?"  
Yggdrasill nodded.  
"Genius! Stop that thinking!" Refill snapped at her brother.  
"But, Nee-san," Genius turned to her. "it would be perfect! How often have we wished to be like the others? Not to be persecuted all the time?"  
"W-well .."

What a sick plan!  
Lloyd knew what Yggdrasill actually tried to do and it was even more horrible that he had gotten his friend's mind spinned around.  
He clenched his teeth.

"Genius, snap out of it!" he yelled and smacked Genius.  
Harder than he had intended to, since Genius fell to the floor.  
"Remember Marble?!" Lloyd yelled. "Remember how she had suffered in the Human Ranch? How she had been turned into an Exebula for no real reason? How _we_ had to kill her!?"  
"B-But .."  
"She called you her grandchild, remember!?" Lloyd yelled even more, wondering if he could change his friend's mind.  
Being a half-elf must be hard in real life, seeing how the elves hate them, as well as the humans.  
Standing in the middle of the two races that formed them.  
Accepted by neither.  
"She died to save us! Just like-" Lloyd clenched his teeth again, knowing that Yggdrasill was smirking at the whole scene. "Just like Anna did! She sacrificed herself, so I and Kratos would stay alive and she wouldn't kill innocent people! Don't you see how _WRONG_ his plan is!?"  
Genius looked at Yggdrasill, to whom Lloyd was pointing.  
"If we'd want everybody to wear an exsphere, half of the population would have to die before the other half would get the exspheres! It would make more victims!"  
The half-elf boy rubbed his cheek and sat up, sighing.  
"You're right, Lloyd. Sorry."  
"Interesting to see that _you_'re against it, Lloyd." Yggdrasill smirked. "I can see the part with your mother being a problem for you. But, then again, if she hadn't done her sacrifice, you wouldn't be here. Neither would be Kratos. And come to think of it, if my brilliant plan hadn't started at all, neither of you three would be."  
Lloyd growled, getting a migraine from the twists of thoughts Yggdrasill's words were giving him.

He was doing the right thing!  
He was trying to change the worlds into worlds, where there would be no sacrifices because of exspheres!

Lloyd stepped towards Yggdrasill and glared.  
"Want me to spill the beans about you, Yggy-chan?"  
"Want me to spill the beans about YOU, Lloyd?" Yggdrasill grinned. "And call me that again and you'll regret it worse than betraying them."  
".. Yggy-chan!" Lloyd sneered and Yggdrasill started to form some kind of magic in his hands.  
"Lloyd, watch out! _Freeze Lancer!_"  
The huge ice needles penetrated Yggdrasill's back, just when Pronyma appeared.  
"You little ..!!" she screamed and shot her own magic at him.  
But Yggdrasill flung himself infront of Genius, kneeling over from the pain.  
"Y-Yggdrasill-sama ..!"  
"What is it?" Yggdrasill asked, glareing at her.  
"W-well, there's a new activity signal coming from Ma-"  
"Got it." he hissed and smiled a bit at Genius, before disappearing with Pronyma again.  
"Why did he let us get away ..?" Refill frowned and all turned to Collet, when she collapsed in pain.  
Lloyd grabbed her and picked her up, everybody ready to leave immideatly for Altessta's place, nobody noticed what Genius picked up.

"Everybody out!"  
Everybody left the room, except for Collet, who was lying unconscious in the bed, Tabatha, Altessta and Refill.  
The others were left in the bigger room, trying to entertain themselves.  
Lloyd was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed and looked very impatient.  
What if it was too late?  
That collapse wasn't a good sign.  
And he knew what would happen. If Altessta came out and told them that Collet hadn't made it,  
Mithos would go berserk and blow his cover, ranting on how he had waited a _long long _time for a fitting manasignature.  
And then he'd rant something that would blow Lloyd's cover as well.  
And because of Refill, Lloyd wouldn't hear the end of it.  
"Neee, Lloyd-kuuuun, pay attention to meeee." somebody said very closely to Lloyd's ear and he saw gloved arms around his neck, from behind.  
".. Zelos?"  
"Yeah, it's me. How you know? Why not pay attention to me?" the Chosen asked in a sort-of-flirty voice.  
Lloyd punched him away.  
"_Keep your body away from me, you Bisexual Bastard!_" he growled and Zelos got up, his cheek very red, like his hair.  
"Aiyah, Lloyd-kun, that hurt!" he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "And how come you think I'm bisexual? True, if I'd only concentrate on one gender, the other gender would be depressed. I'm just too beautiful."  
Lloyd paled and felt like throwing up.  
Refill came out just then with Tabatha and everybody turned to them, with worried faces.  
"Calm down." Refill said and smiled. "Everything is alright. Collet is resting and the Crystallus Illness is going away."  
There was a collective sigh of relieve, especially two from Lloyd and Mithos.  
"Ooooh?" Lloyd said in a suggestive way and looked at Mithos. "Why are _you_ so happy that Collet is alright, _Mithos_?"  
"Well .." Mithos said and pondered for a moment, smiling a bit. "Collet-san is such a cheery person and her way is so heartwarming and happy. It would be a shame to lose someone like that. So, I'm happy that she's alright."  
"Mithos .." Genius muttered, awestruck.  
"Cheeeeeeeeeeseyyyyyyyyyyyyyy .." Lloyd sighed, rubbing his neck and yawned.  
Such a hypocrite his boss was.  
Lloyd sighed again.  
What had he done to deserve to be forced into this Organization?  
His boss was not only in love with his sister, but also a faggot!  
It was a blonde Zelos, alright ..  
"Listen to me, Lloyd!!" Refill yelled and gave Lloyd one of her special kicks.  
Lloyd got knocked into the wall, but didn't feel it.  
Then again, he didn't feel anything for a while now. So that was why he didn't react earlier, when Zelos hugged him.  
So his fever was gone ..?  
"Go to bed." Refill sighed. "You can't listen to anyone anymore."  
Lloyd sighed and went to bed.

His body stiffened and Lloyd frowned, trying to open his eyes. But he couldn't.  
"Meet me outside." someone said and a second later, the stiffness disappeared.  
Lloyd sat up, looking around. Everybody was sleeping and the door didn't close.  
But he felt somebody's presence outside, so he got up and tiptoed outside.

".. Yuan, right?" he asked.  
The blue haired man nodded, swishing his ponytail back, since it had slip over his shoulder.  
"Nice to see you remember, Lloyd." Yuan said.  
"Why did you call me out?"  
".. For this." the man said, snapped his fingers and three Renegades jumped at Lloyd, one holding his hands behind his back, the other two holding each a sword at his throat.  
"Very nice." Yuan said and smirked, turning around. "Don't you think so, Kratos? .. Turn around now."  
Kratos, who had been a few feet away, looking in the other direction, came closer, seeming know not what was going on.  
And frowned when he saw his son caught.  
"What are you trying to do, Yuan?" he asked.  
"Just show you the situation." the Renegade Leader said, shrugging his shoulders. "Basically, I'm here to threaten you. Release the seal of Origin placed on you and Lloyd will be free as a bird then."  
Lloyd frowned.  
What seal?  
What did Yuan mean?  
What kind of seal on Kratos? Shouldn't Lloyd know about this?  
Kratos crossed his arms and was silent.  
"Not going to do it? Then a little taste of what's going to happen to Lloyd, if you don't cooperate."  
The swords at Lloyd's throat switched and formed sort of a circle around his neck, getting tighter, the edges already digging into the skin.  
Kratos flinched and glared at Yuan.  
"Release him."  
"Cooperate."  
"Ts!" Kratos turned away, clenching his teeth.  
Yuan sighed and for a moment looked a bit sad.  
"You changed so much. Fifteen years ago, when dear Anna went to become a Monster and you killed her, you lost your will for life." he said. "And why aren't you willing to die now? You tried it several times beforehand."  
".. Coward." Lloyd hissed.  
"Pardon?"  
"I called you a coward. Can't do anything on your own." he jerked his head slightly to the left, indicating to the Renegade next to him. "Need lowly companions and a hostage to get what you want."  
Yuan smirked and made a signal, the Renegades letting Lloyd go.  
"So, you don't like my way."  
"Nope." Lloyd contered, a cut on his throat bleeding already a bit.  
"Well, get a taste of the consequence!" Yuan shot a ball of electricity at Lloyd, who felt the volts coursing through his body. It felt, like his skin was burning from the inside.  
"See, Kratos?" Yuan asked, sneering at his old comrade. "Now, will you cooperate? Otherwise, Lloyd will die infront of your eyes. Slowly and painfully, of course."  
Kratos glared at Yuan even more, which seemed worse than his worst Aurion Glare ever.  
The seraphim flinched, half done in a movement to grab his sword, when Yuan held his hand towards Lloyd again, ready to fry the boy again. The boy himself, was already in a fighting position.  
The door squeaked open.  
"Wonderful scenery." the door closed again. "All my seraphs fighting each other. I think one of my dreams has come true."  
"Yggdrasill ..!" Yuan spat, glareing at his old boss.  
"I'm warning you. Kill Kratos and I will let you regret having done it, by shattering every memorial piece Martel has kept from you." Yggdrasill said, being still in his Mithos' form.  
Which didn't look very threatening.  
Yuan growled.  
Mithos smirked and sighed happily.  
"It's always amusing to see how my sister is your weakpoint."  
"Yours as well."  
Mithos chuckled and laughed out loud, sounding slight maniac.  
"Mine in a perfectly pure way." he told him and his eyes went wide, grinning. "You know, it's ironic. My sister's fiancé doesn't want her to be resurrected. Perhaps you didn't love her that much?"  
Mithos cocked his head to the side.  
"Or do you still think that my plan is crude?" he asked and blasted Yuan with an invisible force to the floor. "Come to think of it. The Renegades, always in my way, commanded by _you_. You know, if I hadn't promised my sister not to kill you, _I'd kill you_!"  
He laughed maniacally again and kicked Yuan repeatedly into the stomach.  
The door opened again and everybody else inside the house stormed out, staring.  
"Mithos ..?" Genius asked.  
"Yes, Genius? Is something the matter?" the other half-elf boy asked, turning around slowly. "I had hoped everyone would stay in bed. Perhaps Yuan's drug wasn't strong enough."  
"Drug? You drugged us??" Refill asked, gasping when she saw Yuan on the floor, holding his stomach.  
"He actually tried to get a bargain out of a stupid Idea of his. Oh well." Mithos sighed, shrugging his shoulders.  
Genius clenched a flute between his hands.  
"So, it _is_ you."  
"I'm what? The bad guy?" Mithos asked and laughed again. "Yes, that's right!"  
Everybody gasped, except for Lloyd.  
Kratos had slid over to Yuan, quietly and slowly, healing and treating him, Mithos being too busy to watch out.  
"But Mithos-san .." Tabatha mumbled quietly and emotionless voice. "You saved me."  
"Shut up!" Mithos hissed.  
"You saved me."  
"Shut up!!" He threw a light missile at her and shattered her outer layer of skin.  
"Mithos-san .. has .. sa .. ved .. me .."  
"You risked your life to save her? Why did you do that now?!" the half-elf woman shouted.  
Mithos turned away, clenching his teeth.  
"Tabatha .. she looks so much like my sister. But only because she's a prototype. She was supposed to take in the soul of Martel. And she failed! I have no use for her!" he hissed.  
"Mithos .." Genius mumbled. "I thought we understood each other .."  
"Oh, I do, Genius. I would never let you lose your older sister. I know the pain of it." Mithos smiled and held his hand towards the group. "But I _will_ let you lose your precious One!"  
The same light missile was going at Presea, but Altessta jumped infront of her, protecting her and takeing the shot, instead.  
"Altessta-san!" Presea screamed and knelt down, worried.  
Lloyd growled, taking his eyes off his father and Yuan.  
Yuan was sitting up now, still in pain, but Kratos had managed to mend him as much as possible.  
The boy wanted to charge at Mithos, when Pronyma appeared right in front of him, Lloyd stopping just in time.  
"Yggdrasill-sama," she said, as if she was talking to a lover, not to her boss. "your wounds aren't healed yet. Please, leave this to the angels."  
Mithos sighed, glowed for a minute and was in his Yggdrasill form.  
"Very well." he said and he disappeared, along with Pronyma.  
Kratos mumbled something to Yuan, then looked at his son and disappeared as well.  
Everybody was petrified for a second, then Refill knelt down to Altessta, healing him.

"Are you alright?" Lloyd asked Yuan, having stepped over to him.  
"I'm fine. This is nothing." Yuan hissed, getting up and bending over for a second, holding his stomach. "I .. have to hurry and evacuate the Renegades, now that Mithos found us out."  
"Watch out." Lloyd sighed, steadying Yuan, who swayed a lot. ".. why are you trying to stop Mithos?"  
"He's not doing what Martel asked for."  
"What? What did she ask for? Did he, perhaps, understand it wrong?" Collet wondered, who came tappering over. Lloyd jumped at her presence.  
"Martel asked for a world where there would be no discrimination."  
Lloyd shook his head.  
How could one sentence like that change the worlds so much?  
And how could Mithos missunderstand it?  
Lloyd frowned.  
"What is this about dad having a seal of Origin on him?" he hissed.  
Yuan sighed.  
"Origin is sealed through Kratos. The seal is broken, when Kratos releases all of his mana."  
"That would kill him!" Collet gasped and Lloyd did as well.  
"Yes .. the seal is placed onto his life .."  
Lloyd grabbed Yuan's cloak and growled.  
"And you wanted to force him into doing that?! What kind of friend are you!?"  
"Lloyd .." Collet calmed him down, Lloyd just growled and let go.  
"I didn't want him to do it. But there's no other way to gain use of the Eternal Sword."  
"Then why doesn't anybody else try to use it?"  
".. Origin made the sword especially for Mithos."  
"So?" Lloyd snapped.  
"The only race that can use it, is a half-elf."  
Lloyd cursed and Yuan sighed and left.  
"Lloyd, you're bleeding." Collet said, motioning to the cut on Lloyd's throat.  
"That's .." Lloyd said, his voice feeling hoarse. He put his hand over it and felt a warmth radiating from it, cooling his throat. "It's nothing."  
The cut was gone.

"Guys, Altessta needs a doctor." Refill said the next morning.  
She had spent the night next to Altessta, doing her best, but it didn't seem to work.  
"True." Zelos said. "Healing Arts don't work that well on people without Exspheres or Cruxis Crystals."  
Was he imagining it, or was Zelos staring with a grin at Lloyd, when he said Cruxis Crystals?  
"There's a very good doctor in Flanoir. We could ask him for help." Shihna suggested and they went off to Flanoir.  
"Hmm, Aionis should help .. if we use that and the sword at the same time .. that should work, I think .." Zelos mumbled.  
"What are you talking about ..?" Lloyd said.  
His voice sounded so hoarse and his throat felt so hot.  
Perhaps his fever had reversed itself into a zinger of throatpain.  
"Oh, nothing, buddy. But thanks for worrying." Zelos put an arm around Lloyd, who slapped it off with an Aurion Glare.  
Shihna showed them the way to the doctor and explained to the doctor the situation.  
"Fine, I'll do it, but it'll cost you."  
"What!? Are you crazy? There's a life at sta-" Lloyd yelled and started to cough, choking on his own words.  
"I'm not the First Aid For Nothing Army. I've got a serious job. But let's stay with payment if patient becomes healthy again. Show me to the patient."  
So, Genius went with the doctor, using two of their rheairds to fly over to Altessta, the others deciding to wait in Flanoir.  
Lloyd kept coughing at an intervall of five minutes and it kept getting worse.  
"That cough doesn't sound good at all." Refill said and worried when Lloyd seemed to cough so much, he wouldn't get any air. "Lloyd, say something."  
His throat was burning!  
It felt worse than any heartburn he had ever experienced, like he was constatly drinking lava.  
"I'm ... fine .." he gasped and went into one of the rooms they got for the night, leaning against the door.  
He stopped coughing, panting for air.  
His chest was hurting from the coughing.  
It contracted again and Lloyd coughed not so dry as he had before.  
With a paticular strong cough, he suddenly stopped, his eyes wide.  
Lloyd got up, washing his face at the washbowl in the corner of the room.  
The burning in his throat stopped.  
It actually felt rather numb. Like it was covered with a woolen scarf.  
He sighed, not wondering anymore what was wrong with him.  
Everything had gotten so weird lately, he didn't care anymore if he would sprout wings on his ankles, too.  
There was a knock on the door.  
Lloyd opened his mouth to say 'Come in' but was only silent.  
He tried again. He moved his lips, his tongue, but no sound came out.  
He lost his voice!  
The door opened slowly and Refill came in.  
"Lloyd? Doing better?" she asked.  
Lloyd shook his thoughts straight and nodded.  
"Sure? I've got some cough medicine, if you need it."  
The boy shook his head, making a 'I'm fine, fiiiine' movement with his hands.  
"Very well. Better keep warm or else you're gonna get fever again." she said and left.  
Lloyd sighed.  
He wished his father would be here, so he could tell him why he lost his voice.  
But he couldn't really use the communicator, since he didn't have his voice for sending the message.  
Argh, for Cruxis' sake it was everything, that was going downhill now!  
Lloyd made sure his jacket was closed all the way and decided to go for a walk outside.

Dad!  
Lloyd looked happy, when he saw his father's dark figure in the white city, a few minutes after having gone out.  
Kratos noticed his presence and came over.  
Dad, I can't talk anymore!  
Of course, he couldn't say that.  
Dammit!!  
"Something wrong?" Kratos asked, cocking his head to the side.  
Lloyd wrung his hands and searched his pockets for a pen and paper.  
He got it and wrote quickly.  
'I lost my voice!'  
Kratos read it.  
"Oh."  
'Oh? Is that all!? OH!?'  
Kratos chuckled.  
"Don't worry. I'm actually surprised that you lost your voice." he said and they walked slowly through the darker getting city. "But I don't think it's permanent. Wait a bit. Your throat should start to feel cooler after a while. The temporare loss of the voice is actually just the swelling of your vocal cords."  
'That sounds soooo sick.'  
Kratos laughed.  
"Perhaps. But it won't take long. Seeing as your angel transformation has gone on, you got rid of your fever?"  
'Yeah, I did-hang on, didn't you inject me something before Welgaia?!'  
"Yes. It was an anti-fever shot."  
Lloyd nodded his head, looking relieved.  
They kept walking around in silence, until Kratos had to leave.  
"Say, Lloyd, there is something I've been wondering."  
Lloyd looked at his father.  
"Remember the tube with the liquid Aionis I showed you? Any idea where that went?"  
Holy Crap!!  
He had totally forgot about that!  
Argh, if Kratos would find out, he'd be dead!  
Ok, he couldn't actually die because of Aionis' effect, but still ..  
Lloyd kept a pokerface and shook his head, shrugging his shoulders.  
Pretty much saying, that he had no idea.  
"Alright. Still I wonder where it went. Well, whatever." Kratos sighed and ruffled Lloyd's hair before flying off.

That was close ..!  
Lloyd sighed again and kept walking around.  
"Oh, Lloyd. Hi." Collet waved. She was in front of the church.  
The boy went over to her.  
"Feeling better?"  
He nodded.  
"You know, I sort of feel excited."  
Lloyd stood next to her, his eyebrows going up.  
"Well .. before I went on the Journey for Worldregeneration, my grandmother told me that I couldn't go back to the village once I left it. So, when I said goodbye to you the evening before, I thought that I'd never see .. well, 'my' Lloyd again."  
Lloyd listened, his gaze going down to the snowy ground.  
"And .. I was right."  
What?  
Lloyd looked surprised at her again.  
"I was so happy to see you, when we got you out of the Renegade's base." Collet said, remembering everything. "And although I had lost my heart and memories in the Tower, I .. I still knew what was going on .. and I was shocked .."  
The boy's eyes grew wide when he saw the tears coming. Collet hardly ever cried!  
"To see that Mr Kratos was an angel of Cruxis and had betrayed us .. and that he took you away .." she said, trying to hold back more tears. "And then you came back to us. Just fine. I was happy, but .. you had changed."  
Lloyd bit his lip, looking at the ground.  
"You seemed jumpier than ever. And you kept disappearing. And ..well .."  
He didn't like where this was going!  
".. I .. I started to think that you had become .. become one of them!" she whimpered. "That you went over to the other side .."  
Dammit!  
The person he wanted the least to know, aside from Refill!  
She knew it all along!  
He felt really bad about what he was doing ..  
"But .."  
But ..?  
Collet smiled a bit.  
"But, I think I was just being silly. I mean, you hate Cruxis. Cruxis is the one who made your mother suffer so much."  
Lloyd sighed.  
She was right. He hated the organization, but was working for it.  
He put a hand on Collet's head and gently ruffled it a bit, trying to look apologetic.  
"Hehe .." Collet chuckled, wiping her tears away. "I feel stupid for crying. What had I been thinking? Just forget it."  
She gave a little wave and went back to the Inn.

Lloyd growled and kicked one of the pillars of the banister.  
Collet knew!  
She knew it!  
Although she didn't believe it anymore, she knew from the first time he got back to them, that he was on Cruxis' side!  
Dammit!  
He had hoped to find a solution for the whole problem, before anyone would find out ..  
Lloyd sighed and put his head in his arms, although the snow was melting through his clothes.  
He was close to a solution to get away from Cruxis, together with his father.  
But he didn't know if the others would take him back, after discovering the truth.  
Because there was no way that he could get away without blowing his cover.  
He kicked the same pillar again.  
It came out clearly of the banister and crumbled to little rocks when it smashed onto the ground.

Sighing, Lloyd fell down onto the bed.  
He had come back from going to find Kratos and practice more teleporting with him.  
And he didn't watch out if anybody was watching him.  
He started to don't care about that anymore.  
There was no way he could keep it secret forever, anyway.  
The longer he kept it secret, the more they'd hate what he had done.  
Lying.  
Tricking.  
Betraying.  
He _knew_ when he decided to become an angel for Cruxis, that it would end up like this.  
He knew it!  
And he didn't even try to change it quickly.  
If they had found out in Welgaia, it still would've been to late .. he actually shouldn't even have gotten to the point of choosing Cruxis.  
Lloyd sighed again, putting his hands over his face.

"So, Genius, how is Altessta doing?" Refill asked her little brother, who returned the next morning.  
"He's out of danger. I don't really trust that doctor, but some people from Mizuho are watching over Altessta for now."  
They were all relieved over the news.  
Lloyd stretched, he discovered that his throat didn't feel very numb anymore.  
Sort of now, like it was covered with a wrap full of icecubes.  
Maybe he could talk again ..?  
"Guys," he said, his voice still being a bit hoarse, but much better than yesterday. "let's go. To Derris Quaran and finish it all off. Forever!"  
They agreed, it was finally time to do it.  
"Lloyd, your eyes are bloodshot." Refill noticed, reaching out to grab Lloyd's head and examine him.  
Lloyd dodged her hand.  
"No problem. I just didn't sleep very well last night."  
"Oooh? Busy doing something?" Zelos grinned and Lloyd returned a 'Bastard, I'll rip your balls off!' before growling.  
He had noticed already that morning, that his usually brown eyes had gotten a very reddish color.  
He remembered how Collet was, when she had red eyes.  
Would he lose his soul? Not possible.  
His father had his soul .. actually, he was the only one, the other angels in Welgaia had no souls either ..  
More lingering would just be worse, so they boarded their rheairds and flew over.

At the Tower, there were angels stationed outside of the entrance and seemed to wait for them to appear.  
"Lloyd, over here!"  
They turned and saw Yuan, motioning them over.  
He led them to an underground passage that had a warppad to the inside of the Tower.  
"Why are you helping us?" Refill asked.  
"Since Yggdrasill found me out, I can't do anything except depend on you." Yuan said, shrugging his shoulders.  
"You sound pretty negative about that .."  
They warped inside.  
Lloyd kept having to think of the mana he saw around the angels.  
It seemed so familiar. Of course, he had seen a lot of angel's mana in Welgaia.  
"Guys, leave this to me." Zelos smiled, looking ever so important.  
"W-why should we leave it to you!?" Shihna snapped.  
Their mana had been so familiar, like ...  
"Because I prepared something, last time we were here. In case we needed to hurry and so."  
Like .. Zelos'.  
"Zelos ..!" Lloyd gasped.  
"Hmm?" the Chosen went.  
".. You're an angel."  
"I know, I'm so helpful!"  
"Not like that!!" Lloyd yelled at him. "I meant, you having wings and that stuff! I knew it, you damn Bastard Traitor!"  
Zelos' smile vanished and a sneer came up, looking at Lloyd.  
"Quit the crap, Lloyd-kun."  
Lloyd frowned. "What?"  
"Stop acting. You knew it, I knew it, we both know that you work for Cruxis."  
"What!?"  
Oh sh ..!!

**Cat-Alin: **Sorry that it took long-**  
Shihna: **It only took you a few days.**  
Cat-Alin: **Well, the last chapters were up after a day or two days of each other!  
**Shihna:** Oh ..**  
Cat-Alin: **And my hibiskus' biggest flower is already decaying .. why does germany never have lots and lots of sunshine!?**  
Shihna**: Because you get Winter weather in Spring and-**  
Cat-Alin: **Uuurgh ..**  
Shihna: **Dear Readers, please review to this chapter? It has a high point, after all. -laughs-


	17. With this Strength, With this Life

**Cat-Alin: **Hehe, Lloyd is BUSTED!!**  
Shihna: **We know.**  
Cat-Alin: **And everybody will hate him now - except for Collet. She doesn't hate anyone.**  
Shihna: **We know.**  
Cat-Alin: **And the title of this is from Mizu-Kagami, translated of course into english.**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the Animation. If she did, the game would've been in english with japanese synch.

Shit!  
Zelos had busted him!  
Argh, why hadn't he seen it earlier!?  
_Of course_ he knew Zelos' manapattern!  
He had seen so many angels in Welgaia that all their patterns were looking the same.  
So Zelos' mana was that of an angel.  
Urgh, if he had seen it earlier, he could've .. could've what?  
Decided to Zelos as the Traitor, while playing his own little game further?  
They still would've found him out, when he would be in Yggdrasill's shadow when Collet has been used as Martel's vessel.  
Either way, they would've known ..

"Lloyd! Lloyd Irving, answer me!" Refill snapped at him from the side, having snapped at him for the last five minutes when Lloyd had been in his thoughts.  
Zelos just stood at the front, grinning, happy to see that they were going after Lloyd instead of him.  
"Lloyd, are you really ..?" Shihna asked.  
Lloyd sighed, running a hand through his hair.  
"Oh well, game's over."  
Everyone gasped.  
Lloyd crossed his arms, grinning, his now red eyes gleaming like daggers.  
"I'm Cruxis' fifth seraphim" he told them, stepping calmly closer. "and my duty is it to bring the Chosen to Yggdrasill-sama."  
He put his hand on Collet's shoulder, knocking her unconscious with the other one with a whack on the side of her neck.  
Before anyone of the others could react, he teleported to the altar where Zelos was standing, Collet thrown over his shoulder.  
At the same time, Pronyma appeared above them all.  
"Ah, Lloyd-sama." she greeted him with a bow. "I see you've got the Chosen. Shall we bring her to Yggdrasill-sama?"  
"In a while, first, I want to play with them." he said, readjusting Collet on his shoulder.  
"S-so .." Collet mumbled, regaining her consciousness a bit. "I was right .. I was right .."  
"Yes, dear Collet, you were right." Lloyd grinned, looking at the others, who were still staring at him. "I have been in Cruxis' league since Kratos took me to Derris Quaran the first time around. And it was so easy for me to fool you."  
"L-Lloyd .. You're our friend!" Genius yelled, shocked after finding out that his half-elf friend was the bad guy and that his best friend has been working for him.  
"Exactly my point, Genius!" Lloyd smiled. "It was so easy, because who would _ever_ think that the Idiot Lloyd would betray you? The Idiot who was so against the organization, who was so idealistic on saving both worlds."  
"L-Lloyd .." Collet whimpered.  
"Shut up, Chosen!" Lloyd snapped, mumbling a spell - he had started to get control over it - and Collet got tied up, gagged and put into a corner by Lloyd, rather rough.  
"You bastard, Lloyd!" Zelos yelled at him, who had slid back towards the others.  
Lloyd laughed.  
"So, now that the real traitor of the group is revealed, you'll go back to them?" he asked, sneering. "If I remember correctly your motto is 'I side with the strongest'. Do you mean that _they_ are the stronger side? Seeing as how Yggdrasill-sama now has the Chosen, the last key to his goal?"  
"Who says that he has Collet?"  
"I do, of course. You're not going to take her away from me." the fifth seraphim took his wings out. "Unless you really decide to fight with me. Although I am going to be kind and tell you to not even try. Whenever I was on Derris Quaran, I got vigorous swordsmanship training from Kratos. And remember how the fight in the Tower ended?"  
The ones who were there at that fight remembered all to well and the pain they had gotten from it.  
"So?" Lloyd asked, grabbing his swordhilts, ignoring Collet's gagged protests. "Wanna try it?"

The fight started and six against one would seem as unfair to a lot of people, but Lloyd was doing very well.  
He even seemed to be able to win.  
Whenever Genius started to cast a spell, Lloyd would send a tougher version of Angel Feathers at him, striking the half-elf boy on arms and legs, breaking his concentration.  
Refill got her knees kicked away from underneath her when she tried to heal somebody.  
"_Huurai-_" Zelos yelled, pulling his sword-arm back.  
Lloyd grinned and teleported behind the male Chosen, having mastered the teleportation with and without wings last night.  
"You're too slow!" he mocked him and Zelos' attack hit Presea.  
"Oh dear Presea-chan, I am soooo sorry!" Zelos said, holding her. "Let me kiss you better!"  
"Keep your lips off!" Genius hissed and icicled Zelos.  
Lloyd smirked and watched the group fight each other, but noticed that Shihna was missing.  
He gasped slightly, when he saw her having slid over to Collet and tried to get the girl's hands free.  
Lloyd rushed over and, grabbing Shihna's hand, bent her back and gave her a moviestar kiss.  
_Everybody_ went quiet, watching what was happening.  
Except for Collet, who gave a muffled gasp.  
When Lloyd let go of Shihna, but still bent back, he smirked.  
"Not so fast, Sweetcheeks."  
"You .. Pervert!!" Shihna yelled, trying to smack Lloyd with her cards, but Lloyd jumped back and started to cast a spell.  
"Time to end this, guys." he sneered and his red eyes gleamed. "_Hurricane Feather Storm!!_"  
A huge bunch of feathers started to swirl around the whole altar of the tower, needlesharp, dust rising and blinding everyone.  
When the strong wind stopped and the feathers fell to the ground, they saw Lloyd on the top of the altar, Collet thrown over his shoulders again.  
"Well, gotta go, big Boss needs his Missy." he said, giving Collet's knees a clap and looked down at Pronyma, who was bleeding tremendously. "Oops. Sorry about that. I guess you were just in the way. Oh well."  
With a mockish salute to the group, he disappeared.

"There you are." Yggdrasill greeted him.  
Lloyd nodded, holding Collet, who had been crying all the way to the dark chamber with the flowerseed in it.  
He had changed into his Cruxis Clothes, seeing as he knew he was going to meet Yggdrasill and the Leader had always requested him to be wearing his Cruxis Clothes at those times.  
"Where is Pronyma?" Yggdrasill asked, motioning him to lay Collet into the machine.  
Lloyd did so, clenching his teeth.  
".. Dead." he said, mumbling afterwards.  
"Oh, what a shame." the leader said, not sounding disturbed at all. "Well, then, let's begin!"  
The lid closed, Collet, having gotten ungagged and -tied minutes ago, staring wide-eyed at Lloyd while heavy straps of metal locked themselves over the lid and the little cabin filling with smoke, making Collet fall unconscious.  
Kratos came, seeing Collet in the machine and Lloyd, just watching.  
He went over and put a hand onto his son's shoulder, who flinched a bit and turned.  
".. I see your angeltransformation is complete." the older one said.  
"Yeah. I thought that, actually, I'd lose my soul temporarily as well, but I didn't."  
"No. We don't need you as a vessel."  
Lloyd smirked a bit and sighed, rubbing his neck.  
"Well, they know." he said.  
Yggdrasill, watching the Seed without blinking, didn't seem to listen.  
"About you being in Cruxis."  
"Yeah .. that Bastard busted me!"  
".. Zelos?"  
Lloyd nodded, grumpingly and crossing his arms.

"Give Collet back!!"  
The leader and his two seraphs flinched and turned to the door, light flooding in.  
"Guys .." Lloyd mumbled, before he caught himself and glared.  
They were all standing there, panting, more or less alright with scratches, gashes and dirt on face and clothes.  
Refill thrust her staff at Yggdrasill, but her glare was meant for all three of them.  
"Give her back!"  
Yggdrasill looked at the gem on top of the staff for a second and turned again, the machine beeping.  
"It worked!" he said, real enthusiasm in his voice.  
The group gasped, Lloyd got wide-eyed and stared at the machine, the belts slowly unlocking.  
"You did it, Lloyd, congratulations!" Refill snapped at him. "You sacrificed your friend for the childish wish of a mentally unstable man!"  
"And here we thought for a second you'd show remorse .." Zelos mumbled, sighing deeply.  
Yggdrasill smirked at the comments, his eyes straying from the maching to Lloyd for a second.  
The boy shot them his darkest Aurion Glare ever and pointed one of his swords towards the group.  
".. Well, you can be sure of this, Lloyd!" Shihna yelled, staring at the tip of the blade, then at the boy. "That, if the real Collet would be here, she'd hate you! Just as much as we do!"  
"You sold her for nothing!" Genius snapped and Lloyd sneered.  
"I did." he said, putting his sword back. "So?"  
His question was unanswered when the lid opened and Collet opened her eyes, the blue having turned into green.  
She got up and looked around, like she just woke up and spotted someone familiar.  
"Mithos ..?" her voice was entirely different.  
"Nee-sama .." Yggdrasill mumbled, looking happy.  
".. What have you done?"  
"Eh? Oh, you mean my appearance. Don't worry, I'm still myself." he said and glowed, changing into his Mithos form.  
The girl shook her head.  
"Not that." she said. "What have you done to our worlds? You have sacrificed so many people for-"  
"I .. I did it for you." Mithos mumbled. "But .. I've got you back now."  
Lloyd frowned, watching the two.

He understood Mithos' feelings.  
Mithos had lost his sister so early and all he wanted was to have her back.  
And he would walk over the dead to do it, no matter what.  
Lloyd understood it!  
He had lost his parents early and always thought they were dead.  
But when Kratos told him the truth, he had felt so happy .. confused at first but happy!  
Knowing that he wasn't alone in the world, the only one of his blood.  
Lloyd knew that if he'd ever lose Kratos now, he'd go down the same path as Mithos.  
Do everything to get the loved one back.  
Even if the one would reject you afterwards for your doing ..

"Y-you're .. rejecting me?" Mithos asked, his voice trembling.  
Lloyd started, having forgotten everything around him.  
"My sister wouldn't do that .. She wouldn't!!" Mithos screamed and his mana burst out, destroying parts of the wall and the ceiling.  
The fifth seraphim stared, just like everyone else, when Kratos stepped over to Collet and attached the Rune Crest back onto her Cruxis Crystal.  
The green eyes turned blue, then green again ..  
"Goodbye, Mithos." Martel said, being still in Collet. "Fulfill my last wish .. and return the worlds to normal."  
"Please, stay, Nee-sama!" Mithos begged her, shaking, looking like the young boy he was.  
A white smoke-like figure of a woman rouse out of Collet and Collet looked around, confused.  
"What .." Mithos growled, glareing at Kratos. "What have you done!?"  
A handmovement later, a spear out of light got shot through Kratos' back and the seraphim fell down on his knees, coughing up blood.

He'd do the same thing .. the very same thing like Mithos ..  
If he ever lost his loved one ..

Everyone was silent, staring at the sword's silver blad that went clearly through Mithos' chest.  
Lloyd was behind the Leader, holding the sword tight, his eyes looking redder than ever.  
"Remember my condition to stay in Cruxis?" he asked, his voice a single growl.  
Mithos didn't answer, just stood there, shocked, blooding dripping down his chin.  
"If my father ever got hurt in Cruxis' duty .." Lloyd said, glareing at Mithos even worse than he had at his friends. "I'll kill you!!"  
And Lloyd pulled his sword free with a disgusting sound and slashed at Mithos' back several times, before the boy fell to the floor, dead.  
His Cruxis Crystal falling to the ground.  
The group stared at Lloyd, who was standing above the defeated one, blood dripping form his sword and no sign of remorse in his face.  
"L-Lloyd .." Collet gasped, before she looked and knelt down. "Lloyd, Mr Kratos is still alive!"  
Lloyd flinched and quickly knelt next to his father.  
"Dad! Dad, say something!"  
Kratos clenched his teeth and opened his eyes a bit.  
"Dad .." Lloyd mumbled, relieved. Then turned to the group. "Refill, heal him!"  
"What!? Are you crazy!?"  
"I know that you hate and don't trust me anymore!" Lloyd snapped. "But I will leave you alone, once Kratos is alright!"  
Refill huffed and healed Kratos' wound.  
Then it was silent again, Lloyd staring at his father.  
Refill sighed.  
"Well .. it's over. Cruxis has lost it's leader. And the worlds are free now."  
"It's not over." Kratos flinched and sat up. "The Eternal Tree hasn't bloomed yet .. and the worlds aren't reunited yet."  
He turned to his son.  
"Lloyd, you must gain control over the Eternal Sword and reunite the worlds."  
"What? Why me?"  
"Because I know you can." Kratos got up. "You need to get accepted by Origin. And once you have the Eternal Sword in hands, you can make the Eternal Seed grow."  
"But ..!" Lloyd got up, clenching his fists. "If I need to get accepted by Origin, you-"  
"Have to break the seal, I know." Kratos interuppted him. "Lloyd, you know me. I tried to run away from my responibilities and now I must pay. It would've ended this way, anyway."  
The seraphim went to the door, but Lloyd cut his way off.  
"I'm a not going to fight you!" he snapped.  
"I'll be waiting infront of Origin's seal."  
"I said-!!"  
But Kratos went swiftly ahead and teleported away.  
".. Bastard!" Lloyd cursed, kicking the wall, making a dent in it.  
Everyone was silent, until Zelos swished his hair back.  
"Well, Lloyd-kun, you can forget our support in this."  
"Did I ever ask for it!?" Lloyd yelled at him, glareing.  
"Why .. are you all so upset with Lloyd?" Collet asked out of the blue, everyone staring at her.  
"Don't you remember?" Genius aked. "He betrayed us! Zelos busted him and Lloyd admitted it. He was Cruxis' the whole time!"  
Collet looked at them, then at Lloyd and back, her eyes still wide.  
"No, he's not."  
"Collet .." Lloyd sighed and revealed his wings. "Remember? I'm Cruxis' fifth seraphim. I betrayed you! I played a game with everyone since you got to Tethe'alla!"  
"But Cruxis doesn't exist anymore." Collet said. "And besides, you didn't really _want_ to betray us."  
"Huuuh?" everyone asked, Lloyd frowning.  
"When you put me into this thing" Collet pointed at the machine. "you told Yggdrasill that Pronyma was dead. And then you said how sorry you were for betraying us. You said it quietly, but I heard you."  
Lloyd blushed and looked away.  
"Did you really ..?" Refill asked.  
Lloyd cursed quietly and crossed his arms.  
"Of course I did! Dammit, if I hadn't been watched, I would've told you guys to beat it!"  
"See?" Collet smiled. "You really are on our side. And you always were."

"So .. you decided to become an angel the very first moment you were on Derris Quaran?" Refill asked.  
"Right."  
They were in the Inn of Heimdall, sitting on the individual beds, staring at Lloyd, who was answering Twenty Questions.  
"I became one so I wouldn't 'get my head chopped off the minute I went outside of Dad's rooms' as he told me." Lloyd shrugged.  
"And you agreed to Yggdrasill's assignment of bringing Collet to him?"  
"I never agreed to _that_ assignment!" Lloyd snapped. "I was actually sent back to watch over you guys and report back."  
"And all those times you disappeared?"  
"I went to Derris Quaran."  
"Even at that night when I saw you leaping out of the window?"  
Lloyd hesitated for a moment.  
"I went with Kratos to Shadow's Temple and cast a spell over Shadow to break him into bits."  
They were silent, knowing what a pain it was to collect those bobbing figures ..  
"So .. you became an angel, so you lost your senses?"  
"Yes."  
"When did you stop eating?"  
"The day we were at Zelos' house."  
"Sleeping?"  
"Before Celsius."  
"Feeling?"  
".." Lloyd frowned. "In Derris Quaran. When Dad took me there after I got that hallucination at Shadow's altar. I killed two angels and I lost feeling anything at that time. Except when I had the fever. I could feel at that time."  
"But you never lost your voice."  
"I did in Flanoir."  
"Oh .." Refill sighed. "But you didn't lose your soul."  
"No. That only happens to the Chosen."  
"So, the only reason you fought us at the Tower, was because somebody was watching us?"  
"Yes. Pronyma was there. I don't know if Yggdrasill sent her there to watch out or to grab the Chosen. But if I had helped you, Dad and me would've gotten in deep trouble."  
"Sensei, let him rest for now?" Collet suggested. "He has to .. you know, fight his father soon."  
Lloyd growled.  
"Argh, I still can't believe he's making me do that!!" he yelled and repeatedly kicked a thick wooden trunk in the corner.

Lloyd lay awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling.  
Even if he would be able to sleep, he would still be awake.  
He'd love to fight his father and defeat him .. he never managed to do it before.  
But he didn't like to think how Kratos had to release his mana, and therefore the seal, afterwards ..  
Wasn't there a way to save him ..?

"You're late." Kratos greeted them when they had found their way through the Torent Forest, getting to the obelisk.  
Lloyd didn't say anything.  
He had spent the whole night, wondering why he had to do this.  
Kratos may have tried to run away from things, but he wasn't anymore.  
He was taking care of his son, watching out for him. He had done that before Lloyd had gotten into Cruxis.  
"Argh!" Lloyd growled and punched a tree, the tree falling over, broken clearly through.  
".. Oops." Genius said for Lloyd, who just stared.  
Lloyd continued to growl.  
"Use your aggression in the fight, Lloyd." Kratos said and pulled his sword, Lloyd imitating him. "And don't hold back, or you'll get hurt."  
The two charged at each other.

He didn't want to fight his father.  
Not like this!  
He always wanted to have a fair fight with him and win, with no consequences or promises afterwards.  
So, why did he have to fight him like this? Why was there an urge in his body to fight his father, forcing his victory and therefore killing him?  
It made no sense!

Why was Kratos even so intent on fighting him?  
To .. to what?  
He said he had tried to run from his responsibilities and had to pay for it now ..  
So .. he _wanted_ to die?  
But why?  
It was understandable .. he was over fourthousand years old.  
One would get tired of life after such a long time.  
But he had said, that he had stopped thinking about suicide once he had met Anna.  
Or met him again after fifteen years.  
So ..

Maybe ..  
Maybe ..!  
He knew that this was the only way to help his son now!  
And his father would be willing to die, so he could help his son change the worlds.  
Help him achive a goal, something that Mom had always wanted.  
A world free from Cruxis and in Peace ..

".. Lloyd!!"  
The boy flinched. He had been so deep in his thoughts, he hadn't noticed that Kratos kicked his feet away.  
The tip of Kratos' blade was pretty close to his throat.  
".. Concentrate!" Kratos snapped at him, both swordsmen panting. "You're thinking too much!"  
Lloyd clenched his teeth.  
"I know your motif now .." he muttered, his grip on his swordhilts tightening. "And it's just plain stupid!!"  
He swung his arm, the blade of his left sword shoving away Kratos' blade from his throat, kicked Kratos' feet away from underneath him and quickly got up.  
".. _Judgement!!_"  
The light-rain hit Kratos several times, now the older one lying on the floor and sighed.  
".. Alright, you won .." he said, taking the hand Lloyd offered and got back up.  
Kratos frowned at Lloyd, a look that just yelled 'I'm very surprised that you can use magic'.  
The seraphim then turned to the obelisk.  
".. You're really gonna do it?" Lloyd asked, frowning and then he knelt down, still exhausted from the fight.  
"You need it." Kratos said.  
"Aaarrrgh!!" Lloyd cursed and turned to the others. "I want one of you to give that guy a beating that's really painful! He just won't listen to reason!"  
Kratos smirked and his wings erupted from his back, light emitting from his whole body and floating away. The silhouette of the creation spirit Origin appeared and took clearer form by the second.  
Lloyd gasped when Kratos swayed on the point and fell backwards.  
"Dad!" he yelled and jumped forward, catching his father and shaking him. "Oi! Oi!! Say something, you damn bastard!"

Lloyd felt a hot and crackling feeling in his hands, crawling up his arms and focusing on a point in his back.  
The boy felt a surge and flinched when his wings burst out of his back, through his clothes and revealed themselves, bigger than ever.  
Little lights, glittering like stars, travelled through them from his back to the tip of his feathers and swayed out, like little feathers themselves.  
They were silver with blue streaks in them, glittering and glowing, falling onto Kratos, until Kratos' body was glowing in the same silver-blue light, like Lloyd's was starting to do.  
Everyone stared and Lloyd sighed relieved when Kratos opened his eyes again.  
Kratos looked at his son.  
"So you _did_ take the Aionis." he said and Lloyd gasped, realizing that he had busted himself. How, he didn't know.  
"Uh ... yeah .."  
Kratos pointed a finger at Lloyd and wagged it gently.  
"You're grounded once this Journey is over, young man."

**Cat-Alin: **Sorry for the wait .. from the death of Mithos' on I didn't know what to write, really .. but I did my best!**  
Shihna: **Yeah ..**  
Cat-Alin: **And I've got a new story up! Some of you know it. _Exsphere Tragedy_. A modeling of the original story .. and .. uh .. sorry for the first chapter!**  
Shihna: **Why?**  
Cat-Alin: **Uh .. you'll know why when you read it. And the third chapter really got random at the beginning .. I wonder what I was on when I was writing it.**  
Shihna: **Music?**  
Cat-Alin: **.. I got Takki's Song 'Taste Me'! Finally!! By the way, I changed the title a bit .. the next chapter is MAYBE the last one and it's the second part of this one.


	18. I will protect You

**Cat-Alin: **Maybe, now that I think about it, I should've made this a threepart.**  
Shihna: **What?**  
Cat-Alin: **You know: With this Strength last chapter, With this Life this chapter and I will protect you the next chapter. But whatever.**  
Shihna: **Aha. You sure like using Lyrics as titles, don't you?**  
Cat-Alin: **Comes from being a music-addict.**  
Shihna: **Cat-Alin doesn't own Namco, nor Tales of Symphonia, nor the Animation. If she did, Lloyd would've gotten a cooler default costume.**  
Cat-Alin: **Seriously, those brown suspenders are a sin! A BAD sin!!

"Very funny, Dad .." Lloyd sighed and helped him up. "Come on, up with you and you need to rest."  
Kratos rolled his eyes and let his son help him to a near by tree.  
A light shone and a wave of mana appeared, although only the angels and half-elves felt it, and, upon turning, Lloyd saw Origin.  
He was grand, with four arms, packed with muscles that made even Regal look thin.  
"Origin," Lloyd said and stepped up, asking Shihna with a look to step forward, too. "are you still bound to a pact with Mithos?"  
"My pact with him was broken the moment the seal was released." Origin informed them, having a rather highish voice, yet with authority in it.  
"So you are free for a pact."  
"Yes. But I will not form another pact." Origin told them, everyone shocked by this anouncement. "I lost faith. I helped and got betrayed and sealed away for millenia."  
"That's .. understandable .." Lloyd sighed. "But we .. well, 'we' if I may use that word .."  
Lloyd looked over to the group, some of them smiling, Refill, although, was looking away, looking pissed off.  
".. Anyway, the worlds need changing." the fifth seraphim said, turning back to Origin. "So, if you please agree to a pact with Shihna, with your help and power, the Eternal Sword could be used to change the worlds. Right?"  
Origin stared at him and then at the others, last at the man who had been his seal for millenia.  
"I can tell that you are serious about this." Origin finally said. ".. Very well. I'll form a pact with the Summoner."  
The group cheered, while Shihna stepped up even further and spoke her vow to Origin, a diamond ring appearing.  
"But, I must tell you," Origin said, looking at Lloyd. "the Eternal Sword was made for Mithos specifically. You'll have to gain control over the Sword, with your own power."  
Lloyd nodded and Origin disappeared.  
The group cheered, Zelos giving Shihna a biiiig hug, pulling her very close.  
While Shihna was busy beating the living daylights out of him, Lloyd slid back over to his father.  
"Why not cheer with them?" Kratos asked, smirking.  
"Because Refill still hates me." Lloyd said and was right, seeing as how Refill never really looked at him. "Plus, I betrayed them. I'm not part of them anymore."  
"Hmpf .." Kratos got up, ignoring Lloyd's protests. "If you manage to get clear with Refill again .. I mean, everyone of them is forgiving."  
"Especially Collet .."  
"Exactly."  
Collet popped up infront of the two Aurions and grabbed Lloyd's hand, jumping up and down.  
"Isn't that great, Lloyd? We got a pact with Origin now and can save the worlds!" she said, smiling brightly. "Isn't it great? Come on, join us!"  
"Uh .." Lloyd went, stunned.  
Genius was eagerly talking with Presea, stuttering less than before, when something zoomed out of his pocket and attached itself on Collet's neck.  
".. Collet?" Lloyd asked, his hands still tight in the Chosen's. "Oi, Genius, what was that in your pocket?"  
"Huh? Uh .."  
"Fools." Collet said, looking up and grinning. "You really think I'm already dead?"  
"Is Collet-chan having a split personality?" Zelos asked, looking happy when Collet kicked Lloyd and Kratos away from herself.  
"No, I think she's possessed by Mithos." Kratos said, holding one of his wounds and got back up.  
"Ow .. you damn bastard." Lloyd cursed and got back up himself. "I didn't mind killing you once, I can do it again!"  
"You gonna kill Collet, then, too?" Refill asked.  
"No, I'll destroy the Crystal!" the teenager snapped back.  
He charged at Collet, ready to rip the Crystal off, but she jumped up and floated in the air.  
"Fools, all of you." she said and chuckled. "But whatever. I'll just return to Derris Quaran and make my own world. And my sister and I are the only ones that are there! Ahaha!"  
And with a glowing light surrounding her body, she disappeared.

And at the same time, the Tower of Salvation was crumbling to pieces, exploding from above and getting smaller.  
Hearing cries from the elven village, they ran back, ready to help anybody who needed it.  
"Genius, Presea, you help the ones stuck underneath the houses, you can fit through the gaps!" Lloyd ordered them. "Zelos, keep your hormones in and help the ones close to the river, Shihna keep tabs on him!"  
The others scattered around, searching for anybody stuck or cowering in a corner.  
Finally, they had every elf out of the village and stared in shock, when the rest of the Tower crumbled and only a bit stayed.  
A bright lightning bolt shot out of the rest and hit the sky, the sky turning purple.  
".. What's that?" Genius asked.  
"Derris Quaran." Kratos answered.  
"No way!" Refill snapped. "No way, can a planet stay so close to each other, without noticing!"  
"It's the Eternal Sword. It kept the barrier up for fourthousand years." Lloyd told them.  
".. Hey, couldn't we use Derris Quaran? I mean, it's a giant ball of Mana, right?" Shihna asked. "We could use the Sword to link the mana to the Seed, right?"  
"But Altessta is still injured. He can't make the ring."  
"How about Dirk?" Lloyd suggested. "He's a dwarf. He might be losing his abilities because of the surface, but he can still do that."

"So .. you want me to forrrge the rrring?"  
Lloyd nodded.  
"Well .."  
"You're the only one who can do it." Kratos said. "The Tethe'allan dwarf is still severely injured."  
"Hmm .."  
"I've got the items for it." Kratos laid a cloth on the table and a gem, wood and other things tumbled out.  
"Adamantite forrr polishing .. what's that?"  
"Sacred Wood. It needs to fuel the fire, or else you'll be unable to melt the Aionis."  
".. When did you get all that stuff?" Lloyd wondered, frowning.  
"Lloyd, I didn't go down to Tethe'alla or Sylvarant just to meet you." Kratos smirked and Lloyd grumbled embarrassed.  
"Alrright, let's get to worrrk!" Dirk said and the two men did their best to help the dwarf.  
Lloyd stared at the green shimmering ring that had a .. heartshaped stone on it. (_AN: Seriously, it's displayed like that in the menu!_)  
"This will make me be able to use the Eternal Sword, right ..?" he asked and the men nodded. "Thanks, Pop. Thanks, Dad!"

The others were spending their time outside and looked over when Lloyd stepped out.  
"Ring is done and we're ready to go." he grinned.  
"Then let's leave." Kratos said, stepped up behind his son, who turned around.  
"Didn't I tell you to rest!? Your wounds are still bleeding!" he snapped.  
Kratos ignored further protests and tantrums from his son and knocked him on the head slightly.  
"No role-trading, Lloyd. Come on, we need to get Collet back and reunite the worlds."  
Lloyd grumbled, knowing that he was fighting a lost battle and they went towards the field to get onto their rheairds.  
"As a side-note, Lloyd." Refill said, walking next to Lloyd.  
"Yes?"  
"Seeing as how you betrayed us, you will get punishment. Not that you think that we forgive you that easily." Refill smirked. "You're getting detention until you're thirty!"  
"Th-Thirty? Sensei, I've left school for years when I'm that old!"  
Some believed that, some others didn't.  
Which got Lloyd mad.  
And he kicked a random tree.

At the Tower of Salvation in Tethe'alla, they all stared at the rocks and the last remaining piece of the Tower was the platform where the Eternal Sword rested.  
Lloyd took a deep breath and grabbed it, hoping that nothing bad would happen.  
Why should it even?  
The Sword faded and seperated into little lights that rested themselves onto his swords.  
A hologram of Origin appeared.  
"You are now the new master of the Eternal Sword. What is your wish?" he asked.  
"Send us to Derris Quaran."  
They found themselves in a large, mazelike area.  
"Isn't this the sublevel of Derris Quaran?" Lloyd asked and Kratos nodded.  
"You sure must've been here a lot, seeing as how you know this whole comet by heart."  
Lloyd flinched, sensing the coldness in Refill's voice.  
"Uh .. L-Let's go and get Collet back, okay?"  
They walked a few steps ahead.  
"Shouldn't one of the _angels_ guide us?" Refill asked, sneering. "You know this place so well. Unless you _want_ us to get lost."  
"No, but seeing as Kratos and I are the black-sheep traitors of the group here, I don't think you'd like being guided by us."  
".. Zelos? Aren't you an angel as well?" Kratos asked, smirking.  
"I am. But I never spent so much time here like Lloyd or you did."  
Lloyd gave Refill a piece of paper. "There. Simple directions on getting to the end of this maze."  
Refill nodded appreciately and unfolded them, taking over the guide-role, Lloyd and Kratos lagging behind a bit.  
"You seemed to have fully changed towards them, Lloyd."  
"Mh. I betrayed them and they usually hold a grudge against ones that betray. I mean, Collet may have forgiven me already, but Sensei? Heck, no, she'll make me feel guilty until I'm fifty for it."  
Kratos smirked.  
"Stop smirking, this is actually your fault." Lloyd sighed. "If you hadn't taken me to Derris Quaran at the Tower-"  
"You wanted to get crushed by that pillar, then?" Kratos asked and Lloyd was stunned.  
"No, of course not." Lloyd sighed. "I still have no idea what's wrong. Sometimes, I still have an urge-"  
Refill grabbed her staff and pointed it's sharp end at Loyd's neck.  
"I hope for you that that warp-pad over there is the right one." she growled.  
Lloyd, not hearing what she said, growled, grabbed the staff, whirled it, making Refill fall and nailed her to the ground with one knee and the sharp end of her staff at her own neck.  
Everyone stared.  
Lloyd grumbled, threw the staff down and got back up, turning his back on the group and started to walk away.  
Kratos followed him. "Lloyd, wait a minute."

"See?" Lloyd hissed. "I can't hold this muderous feeling inside. Sometimes, I'd just like to grab everyone's head and squish in their skull!"  
Kratos ruffled Lloyd's hair. "But it never really happened. This is only the second time, isn't it?"  
"Yeah .. I thought it was the Aionis I had gotten in me, when I tried to strangle Genius. But .. I transferred my Aionis-part into you. This couldn't be an after-effect of the Aionis, could it?"  
"No. Once Aionis is taken out of your body - which usually isn't possible - you return to the state you were before."  
"Then why, why, why, WHY am I still trying to kill my friends!?"  
Kratos sighed.  
"I don't know. Maybe it's the whole situation."  
"What?"  
"Your betrayal, not to mention the emotional trouble you had before the betrayal, now back in the group and having to save both worlds. Your patience is low at the moment, until all the stress goes away."  
"Hmm .." Lloyd sighed, rubbing his head.  
"Try to get your aggression out on Mithos?"  
"Yeah, yeah .."  
The two went back and Lloyd looked straight at Refill and sighed.  
"I'm really sorry for a what I did, Sensei. I hope I didn't startle you too much."  
"It's alright. Maybe I shouldn't have tried to threaten you." Refill said and they all proceeded ahead. ".. but this warp-pad up front is save, yes?"  
Lloyd looked.  
There was a green circle on the floor and the purple glowing warp-pad beyond.  
"Yes. That one brings us to a higher sub-level of Derris Quaran. A warp-pad a few meters ahead will then bring us to Derris Quaran's city, Welgaia."  
They nodded and stepped over the green circle.  
When Lloyd reached the middle he flinched.

It felt like a sharp needle or something else made out of cold metall had prodded or slashed his whole back.  
Had he imagined it?  
It could be.  
But why was his head starting to hurt?  
Maybe his father was right and the stress was starting to get to him, not just psychically, but also physically.

He shook his head and followed the others onto the warp-pad.  
Lloyd held his head.  
It was throbing harder by the second ..  
"There's Collet!" Genius called, pointing forwards.  
"Get out!" Collet screamed, shaking her head, a hologramm of Mithos half visible out of her back.  
"_You pesky little witch!_" Mithos cursed.

Couldn't they be quiet for a second?  
His head felt like it was a mile long ..  
His vision was getting blurry as well ..

_"Sis!! .. How dare you!?" Mithos glared at him, kneeling over a young woman's dead body.  
"You humans are a disgrace, you shouldn't be allowed to live!" Yuan hissed, charging an electric ball at Lloyd.  
Lloyd looked around .. where the heck was he?  
This wasn't Derris Quaran's sublevel .. it looked similar to Palmacosta's outskirts, but the plants looked like from Tethe'alla ..  
Was this the Then-United World?  
To his left was Kratos, looking down at Martel, then glareing at him.  
"How far are you going to go, trying to get control of Mana!?" he yelled, unsheathing his sword and charging at him.  
NO!!_

Lloyd's eyes burst open and he was leaning on Kratos, everyone else looking ahead.  
The hologramm of Mithos was all the way out of Collet's back and floated over them.  
"_You people .. you have no idea what you're doing! All I wanted to create was a peaceful world, where everyone could live without harm done to them!_" he disappeared.  
They ran ahead, hugging and cheering, having Collet back.  
Only, Kratos and Lloyd remained back.  
"You okay?" Kratos asked, whispering.  
Lloyd frowned, nodded slowly and stood straight.  
"I just had a vision, I think .. you were there when Martel died, weren't you?"  
"Yes. Yuan as well .. why? You saw that?"  
Lloyd nodded.  
"From what angle? Did you see all the 'actors'?"  
Lloyd frowned and shook his head.  
"No, I was in the role of the one who seemed to have killed Martel. Why you ask?"  
"Mh, probably Mithos' outburst from Collet seemed to have spread his mana onto the closest angel possible and that was you. So, he was the one who forced you into the role of the 'bad guy'."  
"Lloyd! I'm so happy to see you!" Collet ran towards him and put her arms around his stomach area and gave him a bearhug.  
"Collet .." Lloyd wheezed, a nerve on his right eye twitching. "Please, let go .."  
"Oh, I'm sorry, Lloyd!" Collet started and let go. "Did I hurt you?"  
"N-no .. I just .. got a little .. surprised .." Lloyd said, side-glancing at his father.  
He had been close to attacking Collet as well.  
"Oh, did our Lloydie-boy perhaps get a little .. _happy_ from it, if I may say so?" Zelos asked, grinning.  
Shihna gave Zelos a disgusted look, then another one at Lloyd.  
"No, I didn't." Lloyd growled, glareing at Zelos. "Anyway, we've got Collet back, the whole group's save and everything is fine now."  
"Not quite .." Shihna growled. "One thing is still left unanswered."  
"And that would be?"  
She grabbed him and started to shake and strangle him a 'violent banshee' style, how Zelos likes to call her.  
"_What was that with that kiss you gave me at the fight!? How dare you? Give me a good reason now, or I'll make sure you'll never be able to sit comfortably for __**years**__!!_"

Argh, why was she so upset about that?  
He only did it to distract her from getting to close!  
If he hadn't, Pronyma had started to interfere ..!  
Ow, this headache was bad ..  
And stars were starting to spin infront of his eyes ..  
And it got black for him.

"Oh dear, Shihna, what did you do?" Collet asked, worried, kneeling down to the unconscious Lloyd.  
"I-I didn't hurt him! Not too badly, did I?" she asked.  
"Well, Shihna-hunny, you're a violent banshee, and you don't seem to be able to control your power-Ah, put it away!!"  
Shihna was busy using Ifrit to hurt Zelos severly, while the others - well, Collet and Kratos - were worried about Lloyd.  
"Don't pain yourself, Shihna, he's just out cold." Kratos said and lifted Lloyd up into his arms. "I hope Mithos won't mind us lagging, but we'll have to rest a bit."  
Everybody mumbled and followed him.  
They ended up in the ajoining chambers of Kratos and Lloyd.  
Lloyd was put back into his bed and covered by his father.  
The others were running around, looking at stuff.  
"What interesting books you have here, Kratos! Angel-language and the ancienct language, I presume?"  
"Indeed, yes. And most of them, Lloyd has read as well."  
Refill's jaw unhinged when she heard that. "He can not only read angel-language but also speak and understand the ancient one?"  
"Yes. But the two are pretty similiar - Chosen of Tethe'alla, what are you doing?"  
Zelos was sitting on the edge of Kratos' bed, staring at the pic of Anna.  
"You've got one _HAWT_ wife, Kratos! So, so? How did you get her? Huh? Huh?" he asked, grinning.  
"I met her in the human ranch of Asgard, that's all you need to know. Now quit staring at my wife with those sex-hungry eyes!" he growled.  
Collet had stumbled into the bathroom.  
"Wow, it's huuuge! What a luxurious life Lloyd must've had here!" she said, amazed.  
Shihna, Refill and Presea, curious, looked as well.  
"Why are there several bathtubs in here, when only one is using the whole room?"  
Kratos shrugged his shoulders.  
"The angels took care of the layout. They're not used to thinking up bathrooms or showers of any kind."  
Collet peeked out of the bathroom. "Could we .. perhaps use the bathtubs?"  
Kratos shrugged his shoulders again.  
"Go ahead. Lloyd wouldn't mind."  
Shihna looked out and glared at Zelos.  
"Don't worry. There's a special lock on the left side, above the handle. It's hard to unlock from the outside."  
"So, if anybody's drowning or so, we'd have to crush the whole door to help!" Zelos grinned, hoping that something like that would happen.  
"Pervert!!" Shihna yelled and the girls disappaered into the bathroom, slamming the door and the lock clicked loudly.  
Kratos sat down on the edge of his son's bed and hoped that Lloyd would wake up soon.

He flinched and opened his eyes.  
Everything was pitchdark. He just barely made out his own figure.  
A clinking got his attention and he noticed, that he was chained to .. a wall, perhaps?  
He couldn't tell. But he couldn't get away, that was for sure.  
_"You awake?"  
_Dad? Perhaps? The voice was so familiar .. but it wasn't quite Kratos' voice.  
_"Ah, I guess you can't see me."_  
No.  
_"I'll light it up a bit."_  
Tiny little fireballs poofed and lighted the darkness up, floating in midair.  
They formed a wide circle around Lloyd, what he was chained to and whoever he was talking to.  
But he still didn't quite see him.  
_"Can you see what you are chained to, now?"_  
Lloyd turned his head to the side, trying to see.  
He wasn't chained at all. It just seemed like a veil of darkness was layed over his wrists and ankles.  
He turned his head more, trying to see.  
It was a statue. The same kind of statue that was on the garden Trainings Grounds.  
A Martel statue, identical to the one Lloyd had teleported on top.  
Lloyd sighed and relaxed, letting his head hang low.  
Was he dreaming?  
_"You aren't dreaming."_  
Ah. Then where was he?  
_"Inside your soul."_  
And who are you?  
_"I'll step closer, let's hope you can see me then, Lloyd."_  
The steps echoed loudly and Lloyd gasped slightly.  
There was another Lloyd in front of him.  
Although .. the eyes seemed so ice-cold, their color red and red wings, real material ones, reaching out of his back.  
His clothes were clingingly tight and black.  
The hair of that Lloyd looking wilder than it was originally.  
_"Surprised?"_  
You could say that.  
_"Well, don't be. I mean, I am You, after all."  
_And why have you chained me here?  
_"I didn't chain you here. You got yourself caught up yourself."  
_What?  
_"Think about it. You became an angel. You gotten yourself into Cruxis. You are betraying your friends. All your fault that you are caught."  
_Very funny. Now untie me.  
_"I can't."  
_The real Lloyd gave a frustrated growl.  
What was he doing here, anyway?  
_"Don't you know?"  
_Would I ask, otherwise?  
The other Lloyd stepped closer, until he leaned his hand next to Lloyd's face, sneering.  
_"You're here to find out how your heart is working."  
_What was that supposed to mean?  
_"You see, .. I'll blunt. I am You. Your true self."_  
What?  
_"I am the part of your heart, soul and brain that thinks what you really think. And I'll tell you right now: You hate everybody."_  
What nonesense!  
He didn't hate anybody!  
_"Really not? What about your so-called friends? You hate them."_  
Why should I?  
_"You want to know why? Fine. You like Collet. You like her kind nature, her happy smile and her forgiveness. But you also hate it."  
_Explain.  
_"She forgives everything and anything. You betrayed her most of your journey long. And she still clings to you, like you were on the Good Side, all the time."_  
Isn't her forgiveness a good thing? Why should he hate it?  
_"Because you want to see her cry."_  
No!  
_"Of course you do! Don't lie to yourself anymore! I am You. I know what you think. You want to see Collet cry. But not just any cry, like she hurt herself."_  
You're crazy. Why should I wish that?  
_"If I'm crazy, you are as well. Fact is, you want Collet to cry .. because of you. You played the Good Boy all the time, just so you could see her cry because of you, when she found out the truth."_

Kratos looked at his son.  
He seemed to be in severe pain, but there was no wound.  
"Is something wrong, Kratos?" Genius asked.  
".. I wonder if Lloyd's haveing a nightmare." Kratos mumbled when Lloyd flinched and clenched his teeth.

_"Because of his clearly boyish proudness of being the best in class, of course."  
_So, I may have been a bit jealous of Genius, but that doesn't mean I hate him.  
_"What about the times he made you sound like a complete dumbass, because you weren't concentrating hard enough?"  
_That's still no reason.  
_"If you don't want to trust yourself .. let's move on. Refill. Clear as well. Her demotivating and yelling at you, because you were a bad student."  
_That's long past.  
_"Not for you. Didn't she tend to use violence, if she lost her temper?"  
_..  
_"You see my point. Or, rather, yours. Zelos - he bugs you, because he hits on you. And he constantly made jokes on how, when you were close, women found Zelos always prettier."_  
Ts, as if I'd really care about that.  
_"Okay, how about this? He busted your cover."  
_My cover busting was bound to happen, anyway!  
_"Ah, yes, but Zelos saying it so clearly and without seeming to mind to make you the scapegoat. That got you ticked off."_  
Hmpf. Regal?  
_"You don't know him well enough, because he is very quiet. So, you don't really hate him. You're just very uncomfortable. Didn't the others tell you that he had killed his girlfriend, who turned into an Exebula?"  
_So? What's that got to do with me hating him?  
_"Who says you hate _him _for that? Let me put that point aside for a moment. Who next?"  
_There's no reason why I should hate Presea.  
_"Of course there is. Didn't you notice? She kept staring at you, remember? Her dark eyes, emotionless even after getting the keycrest, stare at you. Stare into your soul and see the rotten person you are inside. Betrayal and Hate reigning in your heart."  
_I .. did think that she might know something .. but that's no reason to hate!  
But I know one, who you have no reason to tell me I hate.  
_"Shihna, right? No, you don't _hate_ her. I believe it's rather the opposite."  
_Y-you could say that about Collet as well.  
_"Yes, I could. But Collet .. you're getting tired of being her bodyguard since she was six. You like how Shihna is the kind of type who can do without a bodyguard once in a while. And you think it's so cute how vulnerable she is, when it came to her past with Volt."_  
Lloyd gulped. He didn't really like where this was going.  
He needed to think of something to distract the other Lloyd.  
Ok, so what is exactly the point you say I hate about Regal?  
_"As I said: You don't hate Regal. You hate your father."  
_What!? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! Why should I? He may have not been in my life for a long time, but he's here all the time for me right now!  
_"Yes, you're right. When you first heard that he's your father, you were ticked off, of course. Why was he working for somebody, instead of continuing to look for you? You were alive! Why should he give up looking for you, until he found you, instead of giving up."_  
You're digressing. That may have been my first reaction, but I don't mind that anymore.  
_"True. But you hate him, for killing your mother. You hate him, because he brought you into Cruxis. At least, he brought you to Derris Quaran. As I said, you fully turned to Cruxis on your own."  
_He had to kill my mother, because she would've killed me and him and other people, otherwise.  
_"Yes, but couldn't he have tried to use his own Cruxis Crystal? Stick it with the keycrest onto your mother's hand, where her Exsphere used to be and use his mana to control hers, so she would turn back to her old self?"_  
Ts, that's not possible to do.  
_"Of course it is. You read it in the legends and all those other books you've been reading since you became a Seraphim."  
_  
The girls were done bathing, dressed and refreshed, the guys turn it was now in the bathtubs, except for Kratos.  
He remained close to Lloyd, not taking him out of his sight.  
"You seem worried, Kratos." Refill said.  
"Mh .. Lloyd's not sleeping, but he's not unconscious anymore, either. He's in a state, that seems to be .."  
"To be what?"  
"I can't really say. Like a part of him is refusing to wake up."

I don't hate them.  
_"Of course you do."  
_I do not!  
_"You do! You tried to kill to of them and hurt Collet!"  
_I never did anything to Collet!  
_"No, because you stopped yourself - or rather, me - in the last possible second. But you wanted to throw her down the stairs in Shadow's Temple, just now, you wanted to knock her to the floor, when she hugged you. You hate her and all the others!"_  
I do NOT hate them! Why should I have stuck with them all journey long, if I hated them?  
_"Because you had Cruxis' Orders. And that's a good sign, that you fully were on Cruxis' side. Sorry That I Betrayed You Muttered Under Your Breath aside."  
_Lloyd growled.  
This other Lloyd was trying to manipulate him. But he wouldn't get it to work!  
He strained his muscles, trying to free his arms.  
The other Lloyd grinned and shook his head, then took Lloyd's face in his hands and came closer.  
_"Don't try. And why not accept this side of you? The side that hates everyone who has ever done harm to you? Why not stay on Cruxis' side? Join."  
_For a moment, the other Lloyd's voice had sounded identical to Mithos' voices.  
But that was .. nonesense.  
Then again .. No, Mithos wouldn't gain anything from Lloyd going back.  
He wanted Collet. Or rather, her body for Martel.  
He didn't have any use for anyone else.  
_"Stop struggling. You'll just hurt yourself. The more you struggle, the more you get angrier, the worse this place becomes .. can you see it?"  
_The fireballs lowered themselves and spread, forming a ring of fire around the two Lloyds and the statue.  
The dark veil over Lloyd's wrists and ankles turned into black twines full of thorns, Lloyd's blood glistening on it like rubies.  
_"Calm yourself. Otherwise you'll just get hurt more and it'll get worse here .. it's a vicious circle."_  
I can't stay here all the time. People are waiting for me to come back.  
_"What people? Your 'friends' don't forgive you for betraying them. And your father is just taking care of you, because he sees his wife in your reflection. And by taking care of you, he calms his own guilt because he is 'helping Anna's wish'."  
_Better being with people who don't like you than being in darkness all the time with no one to talk.  
_"What is so wrong with staying alone? People abandon you anyway."_  
The other Lloyd's voice wavered from high to low and with cracks in them.  
It sounded like Mithos, but also like other people, although Lloyd didn't recognize their voices right away.  
_"Why not hate the people that hate you? They hate you for what you are. Why not kill them then?"  
_Because it's wrong.  
_"Then, why not try to change everything, so they like you?"  
_People don't like you from the beginning for who you are. You have to do something to gain their trust and kindness.  
_"You try and you try, but they still hate you .. for what you were born .. you can't help that .."_  
Lloyd strained his muscles, the thorns cutting his wrists.

"What's that? B-blood?" Collet stuttered, looking at the floor.  
The others looked down and from the bedspread a thick puddle of blood was slowly dripping on.  
Kratos flinged the blanket off of Lloyd and, indeed, it was as they thought.  
The blood came from cuts on Lloyd's wrists and ankles, getting worse the minute.  
"Lloyd! Lloyd, open your eyes!" Kratos snapped at his son.

The thorns .. were they getting thicker and harder?  
_"Can't escape .."_  
Shut up! I know somebody called me!  
_"Hate .. everyone .. you .. for what .. born .. why .. change .. not .. working .. help .. trust .. lost .. alone .."  
_The other Lloyd seemed to get blurrier and only pieces of sentences came through.  
Lloyd growled, pulling harder on the left twine, feeling that it was starting to lose it's grip.  
And with a snap his left arm was finally free!  
Lloyd sighed, grabbed his right underarm with his left hand and pulled.  
A crackling sound came and the statue behind him got hotter.  
Was it going to turn into lava?  
No .. it was dissolving ..  
Just a bit more and he got his other arm free ..!

".. There!"  
Lloyd sat up, panting.  
"Lloyd!"  
"Lloyd, you okay?" Kratos asked, worried.  
Lloyd looked around a bit. Everyone was surrounding the bed.  
He sighed and rested his head on his knee.  
"Yeah .."  
"Lloyd, you're still bleeding!" Refill snapped, the cuts still bleeding.  
".. Is nothing .." Lloyd mumbled, put his hands like a barrier over his ankle. ".. _First Aid_ .."  
The cuts healed, slowly but surely.  
Kratos and Refill did the other cuts.  
"I love you, guys .. everyone of you .." Lloyd said, smiling a bit, his arms each around Kratos' and Refill's shoulders.  
"Uh .." Zelos said, a bit stunned. "Is everything clear up there, Lloyd?" knocking on the forehead.  
"Yeah. I just understand Mithos much better now .. and I pity him."  
He got up, just a bit unstable on his freshly healed feet, and grinned.  
"Come on, let's go and reunite the worlds, once and for all!"

**Cat-Alin: **Hmmm .. Is this a good place to stop?**  
Shihna: **You already stopped it here, why are you thinking about it, now?**  
Cat-Alin: **Because there's something else I still want to write after the end of Mithos' battle. But it's not that long, so ..**  
Shihna: **Well, you can finish the battle next chapter and make a little Epilogue after that, if you want to.**  
Cat-Alin: **Good Idea! I hope you all liked Lloyd's Illusion Scene! I didn't know what to do. I first wanted to put the other ones in, but I had this urge to make another Crazy Lloyd Moment.**  
Shihna: **Reviews after this long awaited update?


	19. A new World and new Plans

**Cat-Alin: **Ah, I feel refreshed!**  
Shihna: **Because you took a shower after being outside, after all, it's very hot outside for this early yeartime.**  
Cat-Alin: **Noo, I mean because of the reviews. I got new reviews, I feel refreshed and full of ideas.**  
Shihna: **That's good then. Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the Animation. If she did, the OVA would've been entirely different.**  
Cat-Alin: **Except for the part where Kvar dies. That was pretty good .. although Kratos' famous quote wasn't that great ..

They waited outside, while the two Aurions were still in Lloyd's chambers, talking about something.  
And just a few minutes later, they came back out, Lloyd wearing a Cruxis Outfit that looked identical to Kratos', except that the blue was red.  
Otherwise, they were identical.  
Kratos had suggested to Lloyd to change his clothes, since his other ones were bloody and torn from the Illusion or Nightmare that Lloyd had, whatever it was.  
"I must say, that looks better than the other one." Refill admitted.  
"Eh?"  
"Yes, it looks really good on you." Shihna said, nodding a bit. "Whenever I saw you in that Black-Red Outift, you seemed so .. depressing?"  
"Ah .. well, thanks." Lloyd grinned.  
"The same old Lloyd we all knew, finally. That Idiotic Grin never changes." Genius sneered and Lloyd gave him a twist on the side of his head.  
"What you say? Are you sure? You wanna repeat that for me, since I'm such an idiot?" he said, grinning and then laughed.

They walked out of the chambers and were back in the big room where the teleporters were.  
"Why are there no angels here anymore, anyway?" Shihna asked, having wondered about it for a while now.  
"He probably killed them." Kratos said calmly.  
"Even the angels?"  
Lloyd shrugged his shoulders. "He hates everybody, except his sister. And as he said in Collet's body, he just wants a world 'for him and his sister'."  
"I see .. and why are we heading towards the big teleporter?" Refill asked.  
"Because it leads to Mithos' castle. I have the feeling that he's not quite dead yet."  
Following Lloyd's instinct, they used the big warp-pad and found themselves in a big lobby, very dark, the floor and walls out of a stone that looked like black marble, or glass.  
"Are these walls out of Aionis?" Refill asked, seeing the blue glittering strings in it.  
"Yes and No." Kratos told her. "A mixture out of Aionis, molten with the Sacred Fire he had started when Martel died, and stained glass, as found in the Church of Martel."  
"Fascinating!"  
Collet had gone ahead, up the stairs and looked at the big door.  
"We will need a key for this, I think." she said and the others caught up with her.  
"A key _is_ needed for this door, but .." Kratos said and sighed.  
"Mithos has a little .. liking for big, complex places. You should know, you saw how the Tower of Salvation is built for the long way down." Lloyd finished and everybody sighed.  
"So, we will need brute force to get there quicker." Kratos said and motioned Regal and Zelos to get closer.  
The four guys braced themselves and tried to get the door down with their bodyweight.  
After a while, the door gave in and they got to the altar.  
The Eternal Seed floating behind the throne, Yggdrasill infront of it.  
"I'm going home .. I'm returning .." he muttered without end.  
"W-what ..?" Collet mumbled and gasped when Mithos' Cruxis Crystal got itself free from her and settled on Yggdrasill's collarbone again.  
He opened his eyes.  
"Thank you for your trouble of getting me here." he said, sneering.  
Lloyd and Genius made sure that Collet was doing alright, then Genius looked at his half-elf friend.  
"Mithos .. Martel is dead-"  
"No, she's not!" Yggdrasill snapped. "She lives on in her Cruxis Crystal I embedded in the Eternal Seed."  
"That's not living." Lloyd said and got back up. "That's just Being without ever an end in sight. Don't you see how wrong that is?"  
Yggdrasill sneered, looking mad.  
"Lloyd .. don't think I never saw this coming."  
"What?"  
"The moment Kratos brought you to Derris Quaran, I knew you'd never fully fledge yourself to Cruxis. It was clear that at some point you'd betray us .. me." he grinned. "And yet .. you saw it in your heart, and I saw it as well, just recently, remember? The hatred in your heart that lives there, always there and it'll never leave."  
Lloyd growled. "So you sent me that Illusion, trying to get me to become just like you?"  
"Of course not. I sent it, so you would see your true self."  
"This _is_ my true self!" Lloyd barked at him. "This is me, how I'm standing with my friends and family, my Dearest Ones, trying to make the worlds a better place. Didn't you do the same thing, millenia ago?"  
"I did." Yggdrasill sneered. "And see, it may be easy for you. You are human, no, actually, you're half-angelic. But I am a half-elf. _Nobody_ listens to a half-elf, except other half-elves."  
"It doesn't matter what your race is! Do your best and they'll accept you and listen to your requests."  
Yggdrasill laughed.  
"Nonesense! I tried everything and all I got was wounds, mental and phsyical ones, the death of my dearest sister and hatred from everybody." he looked sad for a bit, then he smiled again. "But after seeing how my sister died, I got an idea. Exspheres. Everyone having one, never aging and nobody would be any different anymore. The Exspheres subdue any course of blood, DNA or anything that could be different from others. Everyone just Is, no one is different and no discrimination will ever appear."  
"You call that living? That's just stupid."  
"Ah, no it's not. You see, we half-elves, we have human and elven blood in our veins. Both races despise and hate us." he shook his head. "When we are in Exspheres as Lifeless Beings, half-elves, elves, humans, every race you can think of .. everyone is the same. No discrimination can be done."  
"Life_less_ Beings." Lloyd said, frowning. "What should be so great about that?"  
"Easy, you have control over your physical appearance." Yggdrasill said, glowed for a moment and stood in front of them as Mithos. "Everyone should become lifeless. It would makes things easier."  
"That's an easy-way. Why not try the hard way and get yourself a place in society."  
Mithos sighed and looked really sad.  
"Where should the half-elves go? Neither human, nor elves except us."  
"Anywhere you want." Lloyd said.  
"Don't joke." Mithos contered, barely smirking. "Nobody takes us in, no matter how much we have opened our hearts to them. We get shunned .. until the only way for us to live is around humans, pretending to be elves. Far away from any real elves, who could bust our cover."  
"Mithos .." Genius muttered, understanding is friend. "That's true, but even if we get our place in society through the hard way - or the easy-way - discrimination comes from the heart. That's not a thing you can subdue through Exspheres."  
"It won't be easy, of course." Refill said, crossing her arms. "Months .. Years .. Maybe even Decades. But if we half-elves have our place in society, permanently, then the elves and humans will _have_ to accept us in their circle, even if it takes a long time."  
"You don't try that." Presea mumbled, her eyes looking sadder than ever. "You looked for a way to destroy yourself and everyone around you, until you were lonely .."  
"Once you have only one person you can fully depend on, you will also see how you can manage to get accepted." Regal said, who was usually so quiet. "All you need is one person you can depend on, if you are in need."  
"I .. I had that person .." Mithos stuttered. "And she got killed! What was I supposed to do!? I lost my One Person, I had no where to turn! I had no other choice but to go down this path!"  
"What you're saying is just an excuse for what you .. we've done." Kratos told him. "But it's not a reason. .. We should've looked harder for our Place in Society."  
"Guys .." Lloyd muttered, then looking at Mithos and smirked. "You see? Everyone here is able to see your point of view, but we also see your mistakes. Do yourself a favor and try to-"  
Mithos blasted Lloyd through magic into a pillar. "Don't joke!!" he yelled.  
Kratos wanted to help his son, but Lloyd just got up quickly.  
"You think I would change in a minute, after so many years!?" Mithos yelled at them, his multi-colored wings erupting from his back, his eyes looking red. "That with a few words you could change my view!? You have no idea how hard it was to build this all up! I won't let you destroy it! I _will_ go and make a world, just for me and my sister!!"  
And he charged at them.

Mithos was fast and strong, there was no way one could doubt that.  
Collet's and Refill's offensive spells were no use against him, since he was immune to any light-based magic and Shihna did her best to call Shadow, whenever she had the time.  
Which was not often, since Mithos seemed to know what she was trying to do and did his best to throw her concentration off.  
"_The Anvoid of the dark Abyss_" Shihna casted, concentrating.  
"Try again!" Mithos sneered and threw a lightspear at her, but Zelos used his Beamshield to reflect the attack.  
But he got knocked back, luckily he missed Shihna, and knocked into a pillar.  
"_Shadow!!_" Shihna called and the elemental spirit of Darkness came.  
While he attacked Mithos, Shihna ran to Zelos.  
"You okay?" she asked worried.  
Zelos opened his eyes and grinned at her.  
"Of course .. my hunny." he said in a whisper.  
Shihna sighed relieved and helped him back up, not minding this one time that he was very obviously staring down her shirt.  
"_Hurricane Feather Storm!!_"  
"_Fairy Circle!!_"  
While the feathers cut Mithos, Refill's spell healed their group.

But it didn't seem to work well, since Mithos got even harder afterwards.  
In a few moments, Genius was unconscious protecting Presea, who got hit after him.  
Refill was on the floor, bleeding severely, Kratos pulled her to the outerskirts and healed her as best as he could, his own head wound still bleeding.  
Regal was taking over for Zelos on protecting Shihna, Zelos in the back trying to heal the minor wounds.  
"Taaah!"  
Mithos sneered and blocked Lloyd's attack with one hand, the other against the teenager's stomach and blasted him almost off the platform.  
"Lloyd!" Kratos gasped, busy healing Refill, Lloyd got back up and swayed. "Pull yourself together, boy!"  
Lloyd shook his head.  
His hands were burning up, crawling up his swordhilts into the tip and he charged again.  
His eyes got bloodred.  
The heat got more intensive and the tips of the blade fused, forming themselves into a big bladed, purple sword.  
The Eternal Sword!  
Mithos gasped when he saw the so familiar blade in Lloyd's hands and didn't move when he swung the blade up and it slit him open from his left shoulder to his right hip.  
The boy fell back, his body dissolving and his Cruxis Crystal clinking onto the floor.  
Everyone gave a relieved sigh and Lloyd fell to his knees, using his swords - that had defused themselves again - as support.  
".. Look!" Collet gasped and they all looked up ahead.  
Mithos' Cruxis Crystal floated and a hologram, probably Mithos' soul, appeared.  
"Like with Alicia .." Presea sighed, leaning on Regal to get back up. "If his Exsphere isn't destroyed .."  
"_I'll continue to live._" Mitos said, his voice echoing. "_I wouldn't mind, but .. someday, it would take complete control over me and I'd stay immobile forever._"  
".. Lloyd, please destroy the Crystal .." Genius muttered, his voice cracking. "Free him, while he's still himself."

Mithos' soul looked directly at Lloyd when he stepped up and swung up one of his swords.  
"_You are my shadow._"  
Lloyd flinched and stopped in his movement.  
"_We may have been born at complete different times .. but we're the same._" Mithos said and smiled a bit eerie. "_We had the same path, the same ideals, the same everything .. except that, when we came to the same branch-off .. we chose different paths. I took the one for my goal .._"  
Lloyd frowned, listening intently.  
"_You, on the other hand, as my counterpart, you had to choose the other path. The path with friends, to the same goal, but still, a completely different path .._"  
Lloyd's arm went down slowly, like he didn't want to do it now, after all.  
"_Go ahead, my Shadow. I don't mind. Don't feel sorry for me. I chose that path by my own will._" he said and closed his eyes, looking superior. "_If I had another choice, I would go down the same path. Anything to get to my goal __and__ my sister back!_"  
Lloyd gripped his sword tighter and destroyed the Crystal with one swing.  
The same heat came from his blades and the Eternal Sword formed in front of him again.  
"_You are now the only Master of this Sword. What is your request to it's mighty power?_" Origin's voice asked him.  
".. Re-unite the worlds!"  
The Eternal Sword glowed and an earthquake started.  
"We have to get out of here, this place could crumble together any second!" Refill snapped at them and they ran, Regal carrying the still rather badly injured Refill, just Lloyd stayed back.  
He stared at the throne.  
The shards of the Cruxis Crystal on the floor.  
"Farewell, my Shadow .." he mumbled and bowed down in respect.  
He then turned around and followed the others out.

Back on the ground, they all stared when the earthquake got worse and the eleven elemental spirits appeared in front of them, protecting them with their powers. _(Yes, eleven spirits. Because I count Asuka and the three Sylphs as individuals)_  
"_Your wish was granted._" Origin's voice said, the earthquake dying down. "_.. but the worlds are still missing a link that holds them completely together._"  
"The Eternal Tree, who's roots go through the earth?" Lloyd asked.  
"_Correct._"  
"Lloyd, we need to use Derris Quaran's mana! That should be enough to awaken the Tree!" Shihna said and Lloyd nodded.  
"Yes! Origin, Eternal Sword, please!"  
"_Derris Quaran is too far away. No one could link the mana now._"  
"I don't care, I'll do it!"  
"_You'll die. Your body, even strengthened through your Cruxis Crystal, would get destroyed._"  
"I'm doing it!!" Lloyd yelled.  
"_Very well._" Origin's voice said.  
Lloyd concentrated, but the Eternal Sword glowed and disappeared.  
"It's deflecting the mana ..!" Lloyd cursed. "Then I'll do it on my own!"  
He ran ahead, his wings erupted from his back - much bigger than before - and flew up.  
Everyone stared, Kratos noticing the blood that got spilt whereever Lloyd had stood.  
"Lloyd ..!" he gasped. "You'll kill yourself!"  
And before anyone could say anything else, or even react, he took his own blue wings out and followed his son.

Lloyd was much higher than any angel ever flew and saw the stars getting closer, until he floated in front of the Eternal Seed.  
"Lloyd!"  
The teenager turned around and saw his father next to him.  
"Lloyd, are you crazy? You're going to kill yourself if you don't stop!"  
"If I don't, everyone will die. And everything they fought for, we all fought for, will be a waste!"  
Kratos wanted to lecture Lloyd, but realized what a waste it would be and just sighed.  
"Fine. But you won't do it on your own." he said and ruffled Lloyd's hair.  
"You're gonna help me? Why? Because you can't be bothered about dying, because you're fourthousand years old?"  
Kratos smirked.  
"No, not just me. Your friends are thinking of you right now as well. They're lending the rest of their strength to you and to awaking the Seed."  
Lloyd nodded and a light flashed, the Eternal Sword appearing.  
He grabbed the hilt and smirked at his father.  
Kratos grabbed the hilt as well and they both turned to the Eternal Seed.

Everyone they knew seemed to be concentrating at the moment.  
Refill and Genius, who had known the trouble about being half-elf like Mithos had,  
Presea and Zelos, who had known the loneliness,  
Regal and Shihna, who had known how one got stared at if one was different,  
Collet who had known the responsibility one had for working to a goal,  
every person who had lost a relative to a human ranch,  
the ex-prisoners from the human ranches themselves,  
Lloyd and Kratos, who had chosen their path through trials.  
They both felt the mana of everyone at the moment.  
Lloyd and Kratos held the Eternal Sword up high.  
"_.. RISE!!" _they yelled, their eyes and wings suddenly glowing golden from all of the mana.

The others on the ground stared frightfully to the sky, hoping that the two Aurions were alright.  
A bright light shown from a point far up high and it spread over the whole sky, then fixating itself onto one point.  
".. There they are!" Collet said, pointing to the north at the two pair of wings and they ran to catch up.  
When they arrived, the two Aurions were face to face in a talk with a woman with long green hair.  
"Martel ..?" Genius wondered and the three looked at them.  
"No." the woman said. "I am the soul of the Eternal Tree. And as long as this Tree is adored and loved, it will grow on and on to it's full-size."  
A rumble sounded and a vision of the Eternal Tree's final form appeared.  
"It's just a little seedling. But one day it will look like this." the Tree's soul said. ".. Lloyd, I want you to name this tree."  
"Me?"  
"Yes. The elves planted it so it would protect them, so many millenia ago. But this tree will protect everyone."  
Kratos and Refill patted Lloyd's shoulders.  
"Go on, Lloyd." Refill said. "Name it."  
"A name that everyone will remember."  
"We've worked so hard, it's worth it now, seeing all this." Shihna added.  
Lloyd listened to his friends and nodded.  
"Hm .. This Tree is the link of the two worlds .. it's combining them to one." Lloyd said and looked at the woman. "And this tree will really protect everyone?"  
"Yes. Humans, Elves, Half-elves, even the spirits."  
".. I've got the perfect name." Lloyd said, smiling. He turned to the others. "I think you'll agree."  
"If it's what we think, we're completely sure it's the best one."  
Lloyd looked back at the woman.  
"The tree's name will be Yggdrasill."  
The woman nodded and vanished.  
They were all quiet for a moment and then Lloyd let himself down and sat on the grovel.  
"Puh .. I'm kaputt. What about you guys?" he asked and they all laughed. "Let's go to the closest city."

"It's been two days already." Kratos said and closed the door of the biggest sleepingroom of the Inn of Asgard.  
Refill sat down onto the couch and crossed her legs.  
"No surprise. The fight was exhausting." she said, her own wounds bandaged and healing slowly. "I wouldn't be surprised if they all slept for a week."  
"What about you?" Kratos asked, handing her her orange cloak, which she had taken off for bandaging. "You should sleep as well, seeing as how you were the worst injured one."  
Kratos himself had a bandage around his head. His wound was healing fine.  
"To be honest, I feel like I'm going to fall asleep in a minute anyway, but I had to get the bandages changed." she admitted and turned her head to look out of the window. "But I have to admit, I'm glad I woke up. We've got wonderful sunshine and I can just feel the land filling up with Mana."  
Kratos nodded and sat down next to her.  
"The plants will bloom and the harvest this year will, in short while, be the best they had for millenia."  
Refill nodded and got up, stretching herself and flinched, when her side hurt.  
"I'll lie back down. By the way, why aren't you sleeping?" she asked, looking at him with a wondering smile.  
"I'm an angel, I don't have to sleep."  
"Then why is Lloyd sleeping soundly?"  
"Because he used some of his own mana to reawaken the Tree. Besides, he hasn't been an angel as long as I've been."  
Refill laughed and turned around, walking up the steps again.  
"I think I'll sleep just fine."  
"Nice rest." Kratos said and the door closed.

Most of them were outside of the Inn.  
Collet was sitting with Genius on the steps and laughing together about the stuff they experienced.  
Presea and Regal were standing around, taking in the sun.  
Shihna stepped carefully closer to Zelos, who was leaning against the wall.  
"You feeling okay?" she asked worried.  
"Mh? Of course I am." he grinned.  
"Good. Um .. well .." she stuttered and looked away embarrassed. "I wanted to thank you. I mean, you're just this hurt because you took that blow for me, so .. Thanks."  
Zelos looked a bit surprised.  
"No problem at all, Shihna!"  
Kratos was sitting on the ground, leaning against the wall, his cloak on his lap.  
Refill came out of the most expensive Inn from Asgard and joined him.  
"We love to see that, of course."  
"See what?" Kratos asked.  
"It's the fourth day after the Reunion and Lloyd's still asleep."  
"Blanket thrown off and snoring loudly, probably even drooling?" Kratos asked, smirking.  
Refill laughed. "Exactly. Why, has he been sleeping like that when he was a child as well?"  
"Pretty much."  
The two laughed.  
"You two seem to hit it off pretty well." Zelos grinned, looking over to them.  
"Same back to you and Shihna, Chosen." Kratos sneered.  
"Ah, yes!" Zelos smiled widely and hugged Shihna. "Sweety Shihna has finally confessed her undying love to me!"  
"I didn't!" Shihna screamed into his ear. "I just thanked you for taking that blow in my place!"

"Come on, wake up."  
Lloyd murred something and turned to the side, his shirt already have way up from all the turning over in his sleep.  
"Your going to undercool your kidneys, Lloyd."  
"Neeeh .." Lloyd mumbled, snored and turned over again. "S'tired .."  
"Come on, wake up or I'll rip you down from the bed."  
Lloyd held an arm up and waggled his finger. "Whoever you are, don't you dare!"  
"You are awake then. Come, up with you."  
Lloyd grumbled and sat up, yawning widely, his hair toussled this way and that.  
"Come, look at the great world you created."  
Lloyd's arm got grabbed and he got half pulled outside of the inn.  
"W-wait, I still need to get all the way dressed and brush my teeth, and I'm not awake yet, anyway .." he said in a drowl and flinched when he got into the sunshine.  
Then he recognized the person who had pulled him.  
Kratos.  
"Awake now?" he asked and grinned. He then gave a loud whistle and everybody turned.  
"Lloyd!"  
"He finally woke up!"  
"Lloyd, it's so good to see you!" Collet cheered and ran towards him, tripped, got back up and tripped, falling against his chest, both landing on the floor.  
"Mh .. Collet?" Lloyd asked, the sun right in his eyes.  
Collet chuckled and got up from him, apologizing as well and Lloyd got up as well.  
"So, everyone's okay?" he asked.  
"Yes." Kratos answered. "Refill-san's wounds are almost completely healed and the others are as spirited as ever."  
"Wow, that was a fast recovery."  
Kratos chuckled.  
"Lloyd, you were asleep for five days. Longer, if I hadn't woken you up."

They were all sitting around a large table full with omelettes, pancakes, waffles and other things to eat, eating and enjoying a good talk with the locals.  
"Hey, Regal, didn't you promise Alicia to take off your handcuffs once the worlds were reunited?" Lloyd asked.  
"Indeed, I did." Regal said and then hesitated for a moment. "But I don't want to do it here. I have a special place in mind where I will take them off."  
"Alicia's grave?" Presea asked and Regal nodded.  
"Then we'll finish eating and go there." Lloyd grinned, downing his glass of orangejuice. "Puah, sour!"

"Regal-sama!" George greeted them when they were in Altamira's Lezareno Company.  
"Good to see you, George." Regal said and he said something to George while the others were already at the elevator.  
In front of Alicia's grave, they stood and Regal sighed deeply.  
"Um, Regal-san." Presea said shyly and everybody looked at her. "If you don't mind .. well .. may **I** open your handcuffs? I .. um .. I have forgiven you completely for whatever you may have done to Alicia, so .."  
Regal smiled a bit.  
"I wanted to ask you to do it, anyway." he admitted and knelt down, holding his cuffed hands up.  
Presea took a normal-sized axe and swung it down, crushing the link of the cuffs and the lock as well.  
The rest of the handcuffs came off easily and everybody gave group "Yay!" when Regal's hands were free after sixteen years.  
"It's been a long time .." Regal mumbled and then gave something to Lloyd.  
"What's that?"  
"The Exsphere I have been using these past years. The prisoners were told to use one whenever they went into the collosseum. I'm sure that you know what to do with the Exsphere."  
Lloyd nodded.  
"What are you up to now, after the world is reunited and your hands free again?" Lloyd asked.  
"Well, I've already started. I told George to-"  
A loud explosion, from far away though, occured.  
"Ah, he's fast." Regal nodded in approvement.  
"What?" Zelos asked.  
"I told George to make sure that the part of the Toize Mine, which was covered with Exspheres, would be destroyed. Better to say, any way that would lead to that part of the Mine."  
Another group "Yay!" for Regal's good and fast use of logic.  
"And I'll make sure that my firm is going to help every city that got destroyed be the Desians."  
"I'll help you." Presea said suddenly. "I'm sure Mama, Papa and Alicia would like that. And I want to help those people as well."  
"Th-that's v-v-v .." Genius stuttered and cleared his throat roughly. "That's very nice of you, Presea. You're one great girl!"  
Presea blushed just a tiny bit on her cheeks. "Thank you, Genius."  
She looked over at the others. "I've got a favor to ask. Could we stop by Altessta-san's place for a bit? I want to apologize and make sure he's alright. He got hurt because of me, anyway."

The doctor from Flanoir saw them coming first and greeted them.  
"So nice to see you. The patient is feeling just fine!" he smiled and held out his hand. "Now cough the payment up."  
"You're still around?" Lloyd asked, looking displeased and gave the doctor a big bag full of gald with a sigh.  
The doctor then walked off to Flanoir.  
The others went in and saw Altessta working on something.  
"Mhhr? Oh hello, everyone." he greeted them and smiled his bearded smile. "That earthquake a few days ago .. I assume you managed to reunite the worlds?"  
They nodded.  
"That's wonderful!" Altessta laughed. "Presea, I don't know what your plans are, but if you want to get Ozette rebuilt, I'll help in any way possible."  
Presea crumpled up the hem of her dress a bit and stared at the floor for a second, red in the face.  
"Shy?" Lloyd grinned and Shihna huffed at him.  
"So what? Not everybody is at outgoing as you are."  
"Thank you, Shihna." Lloyd smiled. "I'll just take that as a compliment."  
Genius gave Presea a motivating pat on the back and she stepped to Altessta.  
"Um .. thank you .. I .. I'm going to work with Regal-san on .. on building up every destroyed city, so .. if .. if you really want to help, we'll appreciate it." she stuttered, still looking at the floor.  
"Of course I'll help!"  
"Th-thank you. And .." she stuttered. "I, I wanted to thank you for .. for protecting me when, when Mithos attacked me. I'm sorry you got injured."  
"Oh, that's not a problem at all!" Altessta laughed again. "I'm fit as a ten-year-old now!"  
"Um, yes and .. uh .." she stuttered, getting redder.  
"You can do it, sweety!" Zelos called encouragment from the sidelines, getting shut up by Shihna.  
Presea got very red in the face and then just jumped and put her arms around Altessta's neck.  
"I .. I forgive you. And it's not really your fault that Ozette was destroyed! You were just looking for a place to be safe and live peacefully."  
Altessta was first surprised, but then returned the hug and looked happy that he was forgiven for a mistake he might have done.

Outside, they all stood around.  
"Well, what now?" Shihna asked. "What are our plans now?"  
"I guess this is where our ways seperate." Lloyd said. "Regal and Presea are obviously going to stay in Altamira. Or they are in the cities, rebuilding them."  
"Genius and I are going to travel around, make people understand the ways half-elves are and make them accept them. Or at least to not didscriminate them." Refill said.  
"That's going to be a tough journey you're going to have." Kratos mentioned.  
Refill nodded.  
"Yes. But we thought about it and we saw what happened because of Mithos. Or rather, if half-elves are discriminated too much. So, we want to continue Mithos' work."  
"What, make people lifeless?" Zelos grinned and got a staff-whack from Refill.  
"No!" she hissed.  
"We're going to get half-elves a place in society!" Genius snapped at him. "And we're going to be successfull!"  
"I'm sure you're going to be, Genius, Sensei." Presea nodded.  
Genius blushed.  
"That's the spirit, Genius! Start positive and you stay positive!" Lloyd grinned.  
"Well, I'm going back to Mizuho." Shihna said, shrugging her shoulders. "I'm going to be the next chief, so I have to start taking my responsibilities."  
"I, of course, am going to make sure that all my hunnies stay happy!" Zelos grinned. "But I'll also tell the King the whole truth about what happened. Then .. I dunno what to do with myself."  
"I'm going to miss you all .." Collet said, looking teary.  
"Collet, we're not gone yet." Lloyd calmed her down and sighed. "But soon it will be 'Goodbye'."  
"What are you thinking of doing, anyway?" Refill asked her soon to be ex-student.  
Lloyd was silent and looked up.  
Then he grinned.  
"I'm going to collect every Exsphere or Cruxis Crystal left." he said, shrugging his shoulders.  
"Everyone of them? Even the one of your mother?" Collet asked and Lloyd was silent.  
"No .. I don't think so. You and Zelos can keep yours as well. I trust everybody of this group to not do anything foolish with them."  
"What about Marble's?" Genius asked.  
"Keep it." Lloyd shrugged his shoulders again. "And Dad's gonna help me."  
"Who said that?" Kratos asked.  
"I did." Lloyd grinned back.  
Kratos sighed and held his head.  
"You're as stubborn as Anna was - you definitely come after her."  
Lloyd grinned, knowing that he won.  
"Fine, I'll go along with you. But there's one thing we have to do, before we set out on our journey."  
"I know, I know."  
"If it's creating a map of the new world, you're too late." Refill smirked and got a thick noticeboard out. "I already created one!"  
"When?"  
"Well, Lloyd, **I** didn't spend five days sleeping." she smirked. "So I used my rheaird and flew all over the world, making landmarks and came up with this!"  
She handed out sketches of her worldmap.  
"Whaat? The Gaoracchia Forest united itself with the Forest near Iselia? .. Sybak is next to Luin? Palmacosta is where Sylvarant's Tower was and next to Meltokyo?" Lloyd mumbled, surprised of the changes.

Lloyd and Kratos watched from afar how Collet went back into Iselia, her home, and her greeting from her grandmother.  
".. Let's go?" Lloyd asked and Kratos nodded, both using their wings to get faster to Dirk's house.  
They walked over to Anna's grave and Kratos put a bouquet of flowers on top.  
"When did you think of those?"  
"Lloyd, never go to a grave without flowers or other gifts." Kratos lectured him and then smirked.  
"Well, Mom .." Lloyd muttered and grinned. "We did it. We re-united the worlds and hope that now everything will be peaceful. She wished for that, right?"  
Kratos nodded and ruffled Lloyd's head.  
"We're going on a Journey ourselves now, although we just finished one." Lloyd laughed embarrassed. "But it's so there will be no more victims like you. Okay, maybe we'll find some people that have gone insane because of their un-keycrested Exsphere .. and we'll have to kill them .."  
Kratos knocked Lloyd on the head.  
"What was that with starting positive and staying positive?" he smirked.  
"True." Lloyd grinned and got up.  
They wanted to leave, when steps came closer and a figure from the forest came out.  
"Yuan?" Kratos asked, wondering.  
It was Yuan indeed, who was holding a small bouquet of flowers.  
He nodded and bowed slightly, then layed the flowers on Anna's grave next to Kratos' flowers and gave a silent prayer.  
"What are you doing here?" Lloyd asked a bit stunned.  
"Just telling a good friend of mine and his wife hello." Yuan said and got back up. "Congratulations, you united the worlds."  
Kratos looked at his old friend and frowned. "You don't sound very happy."  
"Hm .. No, I'm sure I'm happy. Martel has her eternal rest now. I just wonder .. what it was all for?" Yuan wondered to himself. "I lost good companions and my subordinates, even Botta and now that Martel has her eternal rest and the worlds are safe, I don't feel happy."  
"Perhaps you didn't ever think of what to do after the worlds are safe?" Kratos asked.  
"That could be. Maybe I'll build a house close to the Eternal Tree's seedling and watch out nobody defiles the place."  
"You do know that the goddess of the Tree _is_ Martel?"  
Yuan flinched and his eyes grew wide.  
"I didn't know that." he admitted and tightened his ponytail, which started to loosen.  
"Where's your engagement ring?" Kratos asked, not seeing the bulge underneath Yuan's gloves.  
"Oh, I lost it. I don't know where and that really bugs me." he sighed.  
Lloyd's eyebrows went up and he searched his pockets.  
"Hang on, I think I picked something like a ring up .." he muttered and checked his wing pack. "Here it is! Is it the ring?"  
He held out a silver ring with engraved pattern of a diamond on the top and writing carved on the inside.  
"Yes, that's it!" Yuan noticed and sighed relieved. "Where did you find it?"  
"You must've lost it when Kratos attacked you, after I warned him that you wanted to attack him. You know, in Haima." Lloyd explained and gave Yuan the ring, who quickly put it on.  
"Thank you, Lloyd." he said. "Where were you two off to, anyway?"  
"Collecting Exspheres. And destroying them."  
"I see. Well, good luck with that."  
Yuan waved them goodbye when the two went closer to the Forest's entrance.  
Lloyd whistled. "Noishe!"  
The big creature barked and ran up to them, joining them on their Journey.

**Cat-Alin **Yeah, everything got rather happy-happy towards the end.**  
Shihna: **But that's understandable. We managed something that seemed impossible.**  
Cat-Alin: **That's true. Don't worry, I'm not going to stop now. Unless you think that this is a perfect ending, then I won't write the Epilogue.**  
Shihna: **So, the descision for the Epilogue lies with the readers?**  
Cat-Alin: **Exactly. Please write in the reviews if you want to read an epilogue or not. If you don't want one, I'll stop this story and it'll be complete. And if you want one, I'll write what I've got in my head and then finish the story.


	20. Epilogue

**Cat-Alin: **Okay, seems like most of the people want an epilogue.**  
Shihna: **Didn't they say 'Do what you like, the end of last chapter was good'?**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah .. but I'm still writing it, since some said I could write one.  
**Shihna: **Actually, it sounded like they wanted you to make a sequel to this.**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah, but .. I have no idea how I could make a sequel out of Caught. So, just an epilogue.  
**Shihna:** Cat-Alin doesn't own Tales of Symphonia, nor Namco, nor the Animation. If she did, Lloyd would've been buffer, a bad-ass and much more like Kratos.  
**Cat-Alin:** A picture of Lloyd's Outfit in the epilogue is in my Profile. I didn't draw it, it's from albireo. It was originally back, but I inverted the colors to white.

_11 Years passed_

"Puh ..!"  
With a relieved sigh, a big brown bag was put on the floor, the contents clinking together.  
"The last ones?" a man asked.  
He was probably in his late twens, wore sandcolored pants and a darkblue sleeveless shirt that clung to his broad chest. His hair was rather wild and hung over his left eye.  
"Yeah .. finally."  
The other one of the duo was also most likely in his late twens.  
He wore a tight-fitting white suit with a black belt and black ornamentations.  
His chocolatebrown hair hung a bit over the right side of his face and the traces of a few-days beard were on his chin.  
"I lost all feeling for time, how long did we look for these, Kratos?" the one with brown hair said.  
"Eleven years, Lloyd." Kratos smirked.  
"Heh .. eleven years .. I wonder .."  
"Wondering what the others are doing?" his father said it out loud.  
"Yeah .. geez, over a decade now .. seems like eternity to me."  
"Well, we're close to Iselia. Shall we go?" Kratos asked and went ahead.  
Lloyd sighed and smirked. "How come you can read me like an open book?"  
"Because I'm your father."  
Lloyd laughed and caught up with him, the big brown bag back on his back.

"Wow, it changed .." Lloyd gasped.  
The once burnt down houses were rebuilt.  
Not just rebuilt, they were even better than before. They were bigger, out of sturdier wood or even stones and the paths were now gravelled.  
".. Lloyd? Kratos-san ..?"  
The two turned and the next moment a big bunch of fluffly blonde hair got into Lloyd's face.  
"So great to see you again, it's been ages!" the owner of the blonde hair said, a woman of about twenty-seven.  
".. C- .. Collet!?" Lloyd gasped and broke the hug off, staring at his childhoodfriend.  
She nodded.  
Collet's hair had gotten longer and lost it's curls at the end and she didn't wear her Cruxis Crystal anymore.  
Her figure didn't fill very much out, but that could be because of her wide-cut blue dress, a white apron strung across it.  
"Great to see you again, Lloyd. You too, Kratos-san!" Collet smiled and the two men returned it. "Are you done with your Journey?"  
"Yeah, we just have to destroy the last batch. What happened in the eleven years?"  
Collet wanted to answer when a big man stood in the door of the house she had come out of.  
"Brunel! Get back here, you can't leave the counter just like that!" he called.  
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Collet called back. "I'll be there in two minutes. Sorry about that."  
Lloyd cocked his head to the side. "What?"  
"Come!" she said and ran ahead back into the building, the two men following her.  
It was the grocery store, just that it had gotten bigger and more selection than before.  
There was a separate part for weapons and armor, another one for cooking ingredients, another one for Gels and other supply.  
"You work here?" Lloyd asked, enjoying the cool breeze that came when he entered.  
The day outside was very hot and breezes were only a few.  
"Yes, for about two years now. Before, I helped them rebuiled and improve the buildings. Regal-san and Presea helped as well."  
She clapped her hands and her eyes sparkled.  
"I don't know if you saw Presea yet, but it seems her Exsphere has no more control over her since she got the keycrest and she started growing again!"  
"Wow! Can't wait to see her, then." Lloyd grinned and got a glare from the big man behind the counter of the weapon department. "Who's that, anyway?"  
"Ah, the mayor's brother."  
"I knew he gave me a bad feeling." Lloyd shook himself and Collet wondered if he was cold.  
"Oh dear, maybe it's not good to have it too cold in here! I mean, with the heat outside and then the cooling inside .. I'm sorry, Lloyd."  
Lloyd couldn't help but grin, as well as Kratos.  
"Glad to see you didn't change, Collet."  
Collet chuckled and said goodbye when the two mentioned they were on their way to see the others.

They bumped into a young man.  
"I'm sorry."  
"No problem-Lloyd?"  
Lloyd frowned. The young man had silvery hair, cut short and wild.  
His clothes were robes with swirly patterns on the seams, wide and he wore a pair of small, round glasses.  
".. Who ..?" Lloyd asked.  
"Lloyd, that's Genius." Kratos said.  
"GENIUS!?"  
"Thanks for the reaction, Lloyd." Genius grinned.  
"Wow .. you _changed_!" Lloyd said and laughed. "I mean, what happened to the little squirt?"  
He put his hand on Genius' head.  
"Although you're still smaller than I am." he grinned.  
"That's because I'm five years younger than you are!" Genius snapped and the two laughed. "What are you doing in Iselia?"  
"We finished our Journey." Lloyd said.  
"And Lloyd wanted to know what happened in the past years." Kratos smirked. "You've grown into a fine young man, Genius."  
"Thanks." he smirked and looked pleased. "Remember the school, Lloyd?"  
"Uh .. yeah .." Lloyd sighed.  
Genius pointed to the left. "That's it. It got improved."  
The two Aurions looked and Lloyd lost his breath.  
The school had been turned into a three store stone building, in the back a free space where the sports classes were given and a tower on the north part for astronomy.  
"And guess what." Genius grinned. "I'm one of the teachers."  
"You? Really?" Lloyd asked. "Cool, what are your subjects?"  
"Magic for half-elves, history and literature."  
"Yeah, where's Sensei?" Lloyd looked around, like he was waiting to see the other silver haired half-elf. "What happened with your Journey anyway?"  
"Well .. we've got the half-elves at least _accepted_. Except for Heimdall. There are humans now allowed in there even without royal permission. But half-elves are still completely hated. Actually, I've told Refill how we weren't getting anywhere anymore. So, we went our seperate ways a year ago."  
"Eh?" Lloyd blinked.  
"What are you saying, you're getting nowhere?" Kratos asked. "You managed to get half-elves accepted almost everywhere. That's much better than anything Mithos ever managed to do."  
"Yeah .. but when we left Heimdall after the Tower of Salvation crumbled, it seemed like the elder of the elves and the others were seeing their mistake that shunning the half-elves so much for such a long time caused the whole tragedy. So, we thought that with that little beginning step on their side, we'd get them to at least accept half-elves. But they ignored us. Half-elves still aren't allowed into Heimdall."  
Genius shrugged his shoulders.  
"Can't be helped. Maybe Refill and I will try again in a few years. See, if we can improve what we already managed."

They consulted the worldmap they had gotten from Refill years ago.  
"Anyone you want to see next, specifically?" Kratos asked.  
"Hm .. I'd like to meet Regal and Presea. I'm curious what Presea looks like now."  
Kratos tapped to the west.  
"There. Altamira, next to the ruins of the Balacruf Mausoleum."  
Lloyd put the wolrdmap back and they took their wings out, flying over the sea.

"You wish to see Master Regal and Miss Presea?" an old man in a red suit asked. "Of course, you can, how shall I introduce you?"  
"We're old friends of them. Lloyd and Kratos Aurion." Lloyd said.  
"Hmm?" the old man frowned. "Ah, Mr Aurion and the young Aurion. Irving was your name beforehand, wasn't it?"  
"Yes."  
"Ah, remember me? I'm George. Hah, I almost didn't recognize you." George smiled and they went into the elevator and got out at the second floor.  
The once big room had been seperated into a small waiting room and a door led to the office.  
"Master Regal found it rather disturbing to have the office next to the elevator. One then always bothered in an important discussion. So, a few years ago, after rebuilding the cities, he let a wall seperate the room and make an office, big enough for two." George explained and knocked onto the door for the office.  
"Yes?"  
George peeked in.  
"Master Regal, Mr Aurion and the young Aurion wish to see you."  
"Bring them in."  
Lloyd smirked at the deep, formal and respectful voice he hadn't heard for years and he entered with his father.  
Regal sat behind one of three desks. His desk was in front of the window, the other two on each side.  
Regal got up and greeted them with a firm handshake.  
He had cut his hair to about shoulder length and geled it back.  
His suit was red, like George's, but the pants were creme colored.  
"Good to see you, it's been a long while."  
Lloyd grinned. "Great to see you. I still can't really grasp that your hands are free again."  
The three laughed.  
Regal sat back behind his desk and the two Aurions sat on two chairs in the middle of the room between the three desks.  
"So, what have you been doing? Any success with your Exsphere Search?" Regal asked.  
"Yeah, we got them all. And I heard from Collet that you managed to rebuild all the cities."  
"Yes. We started with Palmacosta, took then care of Iselia. Ozette and Luin we built up parallel to each other, so we still have to take care of little things in those two cities. Actually, Presea is right now in Ozette, managing the last details there."  
"She's not here? That's too bad .." Lloyd muttered.  
"I assume you heard that she is growing normally again after taking off her Exsphere?"  
"Yeah, Collet told us. And I'm sort of curious." the young man admitted.  
"No worries. Curiousity is normal. And Presea's been gone for several hours, since this morning actually. I assume she's going to be back soon."  
The talk then went to general discussion.

The elevator binged and everyone listened up.  
A few minutes later, a woman entered.  
"Regal-san, I'm back. Ozette's fully rebuilt .." she said and stopped in her tracks when she saw the visitors. ".. Lloyd-san and Kratos-san, am I right?"  
"P .. Presea ..?"  
"Ah, yes. I surprise you?" she asked, looking a bit apologetic.  
Her bright pink hair seemed a bit paler than at the time of the Journey, but the bangs were still the same. She had it tied her hair back into a bun.  
Presea had shot up, her height now being around 1.65 m, her figure had filled out. She wore a well-cut blueish blazer with a white blouse underneath and a darkblue skirt with matching high-heels.  
Lloyd got up and took her hands.  
"Let's look at you." he grinned and turned her slowly around, like she was a ballerina. "Wow, you changed so much! You're one very pretty woman now, Presea!"  
"Ah, why thank you." Presea muttered, blushing. "Please stop turning me around, I'm getting dizzy."  
"Sorry." Lloyd stopped. "You know, I just saw you and I swear, I could fall in love with you."  
Presea's cheeks got red.  
"W-well .."  
The two older men laughed.  
"Lloyd, let her be, you're getting her all shy again." Regal laughed. "Now, what about Ozette?"  
Presea cleared her throat.  
"Yes, it got fully rebuilt now. The grocery store still needs a supply sent, but otherwise everything is working just fine there."  
Regal nodded approvingly.  
"You said that you were rebuilding Luin?" Kratos said.  
"Yes."  
Kratos nodded and Lloyd frowned.  
A few minutes later, they were ready to leave again and Presea and Regal talked with them, until the elevator came.  
"It was nice seeing you again, Lloyd-san, Kratos-san." Presea said.  
"A pleasant surprise. Any idea where to go next?" Regal asked.  
"If Lloyd doesn't mind, I'd like to suggest we go to Luin." Kratos answered, looking at his son who frowned for a moment and then grinned.  
"Sure, why not?"  
"Well, have a safe trip there." Presea said, bowed a bit when saying goodbye and smiled.  
Lloyd looked surprised.  
"Wow, Presea, you can smile really easier and much prettier than before. Suits you." he said and grinned. "You're growing up, you can show your emotions much better .. seems like everything is going just fine for you."  
"Ah, yes it is." Presea admitted and blushed a bit.

"And just why are you so intent on going to Luin?" Lloyd asked when they arrived at the city.  
".. Your mother was born here. Just like you. You were born here as well." Kratos said.  
"Oooooh .. did you get born in Luin as well?" he asked.  
"Lloyd, at my time Luin wasn't called 'Luin' .. but yes, I was born in the same city that got destroyed and _then _called Luin."  
"Right .. I forgot. You told me when I asked about Mom, right?" Lloyd wondered.  
His eyes went behind his father, scanning the lively town.  
Sure, there were still some things to do.  
Regal had told them, that they wanted to renew the fountain, which was Luin's trademark, and the streets wider.  
While his eyes were scanning the streetlife, he noticed a woman with a slight oriental trace in her brown eyes.  
Her black hair was tied into a wildish ponytail, the ends falling to the top of the obi around her waist, holding together a silky blue kimono, embroidered with white, thin lines and blossoms.  
Lloyd passed his father, who followed a few steps behind, towards the woman and gaped.  
"Sh .. Sh .." he stuttered, a flush around his cheeks. "Shihna?"  
The woman looked at him, for a moment unsure and then they widened and she smiled.  
"Lloyd! Good to see you again!" she greeted him. "Kratos is here, too!"  
Lloyd was still busy oggling at Shihna, who turned towards the shop, yelling to somebody to come here.  
"Shihna-chan, what is it?" a man asked.  
Lloyd got his eyes off of Shihna and looked. And gasped.  
"_Zelos!?_" he was stunned.  
Zelos was wearing a white shirt and, sadly still, a "lightish red" vest with a pair of tan pants.  
But the thing that had shocked Lloyd was, that Zelos _had cut his hair_!  
It wasn't curly anymore and it only went about down to his chin in fine strands, but Zelos still grinned like the last time they'd seen him.  
"Shocked, Lloyd-kun?" he asked.  
"Uh .. sure .."  
"Hey, Lloyd-kun, don't I look pretty young for being 33?" Zelos grinned.  
".. yeah .."  
"That's because of the minimum amount of Aionis put into your body, Chosen." Kratos said. "In, at the least, 15 years, you'll start to get wrinkles and your hair will turn grey."  
Zelos looked shocked.

They talked a bit about what had happened eleven years ago.  
Lloyd got a blank stare for a moment.  
"Hang on, if you were 19 when the Journey ended" he said, meaning Shihna. "then your current age is thi-"  
"_I'M STILL TWENTY-NINE!!_" Shihna yelled at him.  
"Glad to see that Lloyd is still somewhat of a slowpoke." Zelos said, crossing his arms.  
"Yes, sometimes his brain turns off .." Kratos sighed.  
Lloyd regained his sense of hearing, Shihna had been very loud, and shook his head.  
"Ow .. hey, what are you two doing here, anyway?"  
"Well .." Shihna said, blushing a bit, but looking displeased at the same time.  
"Shihna-chan and I are having a Date!"  
The two Aurions gaped.  
"It's not a Date!" Shihna huffed. "I needed to get some stuff for the Clan and since Zelos had been bugging me for Days to go into city with him, I made him my packmule."  
"I see. Seeing as how your characters are a total opposite of each other, it can't really be possible." Kratos said.  
"But on the other hand, it can." Lloyd added. "You know .. 'Differences attract each other'."  
Shihna and Zelos wondered for a second, if that could be true.  
Shihna thought it wasn't.  
Zelos did.  
"Is the same thing that got my parents together!" Lloyd grinned.  
Kratos blushed a bit. But just a _tiny_ bit!  
"Hey, you got any Idea where Sensei could be?" Lloyd asked, changing the subject. "Genius told us that they seperated a year ago."  
"Hm .." they both wondered.  
"No idea. But she's most likely going to be close to a ruin." Shihna suggested.

"Why the Mana Tower?" Lloyd asked, staring at the big tower, although mostly sunken still into the ground.  
"It's the closest ruin we got and no better place than to start here." Kratos answered.  
A figure was standing in front of the tower, writing vigorously onto a piece of paper.  
It was Refill.  
"Sensei?" Lloyd asked.  
Refill turned around, looking surprised.  
"Lloyd, you are not my student anymore, you don't need to call me that." she told him.  
"True .. but just calling you 'Refill' all of the sudden is weird."  
The half-elf agreed with him on that.  
They got into a talk.  
Refill had been travelling around the world for the last year, getting every detail she could think of from the places where the summon spirits had been.  
She was planning on getting a big group together and rebuild them, making them into sanctuaries.  
Besides, it would give her a good reason to study every one of the places.  
"Have you seen Genius?" Refill asked, just on a sidenote.  
"Yeah, he's in Iselia."  
"How's he doing?"  
"Are you worried about him?" Lloyd asked.  
"Of course I am. He may be twenty-three, but still my little brother. I always worry." Refill huffed.  
"Well, you can rest asure, he's fine." Kratos told her. "He thinks that you two could try to get the half-elves accepted in Heimdall again in a few years."  
"We could try again .." Refill sighed. "If we ever get them to listen longer than five minutes .."  
"What exactly went wrong?" Lloyd asked, getting curious.  
"Well, Genius probably told you. Seeing what Mithos had done .. seeing how the Tower of Salvation, created by Mithos, had collapsed onto their village, it showed them what happened, if the half-elves are discriminated. Too long." Refill told them. "So, we thought that they would see reason to our request. We didn't want half-elves to get let into the village without suspiscion or live in there. But at least accept the half-elves or help a half-elf, if he stumbles to their village looking for shelter."  
She sighed deeply.  
"But they just didn't seem to listen. Or see their mistake. They thought that, if they'd let Half-elves in, they'd demand more and more in time until .. well, until what exactly, the Elder never told us. We were thrown out of Heimdall again."  
"I don't think that Hope is all gone." Kratos suggested. "Give them some time. Maybe you rushed into getting the half-elves accepted with Heimdall. In a few years, give them your offer again. Maybe they'll listen, then."  
"That could be, yes. It would be great if it would work."

The day went by and the two Aurions camped outside, close to where Anna's grave was.  
The last exspheres were destroyed and now they just enjoyed the peaceful thought of having finished their journey.  
"Lloyd, we finished our journey." Kratos said, staring into the fire. "What are your plans now?"  
Lloyd, who was lying on his back, his heads behind his head and staring at the stars side-glanced at his father.  
".. It depends .. what are your plans?" he returned.  
Kratos was quiet.  
The silence kept on.  
Lloyd took a deep breath.  
"I know that you want to leave."  
Kratos flinched and looked at his son. Then back at the fire.  
"But I won't let you."  
"Lloyd-"  
The man sat up, leaning on his elbow.  
"Not alone."  
His father was speechless.  
".. Lloyd, are you sure?" he finally asked. "What about .."  
He was looking for the right words.  
"Don't you want to marry? Get a family?" he smirked a bit. "Just because she's using him as a packmule doesn't mean she's not available anymore."  
"D-Dad .." Lloyd muttered, flushing a bit, not very noticable in the dark.  
"Don't you? Marry, become a father yourself and raise a child?" Kratos asked after another silence.  
Lloyd looked at the ground and sat up completely.  
"No. Because I'd leave them. You'd stay until the child was born and then leave. And I would still come with you."  
Kratos was shocked at what his son was saying.  
"Lloyd ..!"  
"Dad, how can I be a good father, if I grew up most of the time without my real father?"  
"You had Dirk."  
"Yeah, but the older I got the less I saw him as a father. He took care of me and raised me, but he is not my father. I never really did see him as one, I guess .."  
Lloyd shook his head and looked his father straight into the eye.  
"Even if I would marry and raise a child, at some point, whenever it is that you leave - when the child is born, a toddler or already grown up - I'd still leave them. For the reason that I want to be with my father. Because I never got enough time with him."  
"Lloyd, we've been travelling together for the last eleven years." Kratos was trying to reason with his son. "And we spent a lot of time together on the Journey for the Worldregeneration."  
"Yeah, but I still have this feeling that I don't know everything about you. Or enough."  
Kratos went over to his son and sat back down.  
"There isn't much good to know everything about me. You know about my time in Cruxis, about my time with your mother and the time I've spent with you. The rest is a waste of time."  
Lloyd shrugged his shoulders.  
"So? It's time we waste together."  
Kratos sighed.  
"It's late." he said and ruffled his hand through his son's hair. "Go get some sleep."  
Lloyd smirked a bit when he had his head on his father's lap.  
And he fell asleep a little while afterwards.  
Kratos' fingers stroking this Lloyd's hair.

The wind blew mildly over the plains and an echo rose from the hole in the distance.  
Kratos looked at his son, who was scanning the bare fields, as if he were to remember them.  
"Are you sure, Lloyd?" he asked.  
"Yeah."  
"You won't be able to return, once you decide to spent enough time with me."  
"I know. But I think this is for the best." Lloyd agreed.  
He turned to his father, the Eternal Sword already in his hand.  
".. you're not going to say goodbye?"  
".. No." his son sighed faintly. "If I were to, I'd just hurt them. We got to see each other for a last time. And it's good. I know they're doing fine."  
"Then I won't say anymore."  
Lloyd nodded, closed his eyes and concentrated.  
A blue barrier formed around him and his father.  
They felt their feet leaving the ground and flying towards the sky.  
To Derris Quaran.

**Cat-Alin: **Sorry for the wait. But it's done.**  
Shihna: **Are you happy?**  
Cat-Alin: **I guess. Ironic, but I'm thinking of "Bye-Bye" from Mariah Carey in my head right now.**  
Shihna: **Well, that fits.**  
Cat-Alin: **Yeah .. I'm tired, but happy. And I just noticed .. I forgot to mention Noishe ..**  
Shihna: **You do that in every story.**  
Cat-Alin: **Oops. Well .. I guess they leave Noishe with Genius or Collet. Or took him with. Whatever you think happened to Noishe.**  
Shihna: **Reviews, dear Readers? The first story Cat-Alin finished on !**  
Cat-Alin: **Oh, and, actually, Zelos wasn't really supposed to be there at the scene with Shihna. I just started to write yesterday and he just popped up. And my idea was that he finally managed to persuade Shihna to go on a date with him.  
But I don't really think that it would fit to Zelos to stand around and talk with the Aurions when he's on a date with his "precious, voluptuous hunny"!  
Btw, I'm going to reread all the chapters sometime and correct any misspelling or any wrong fact.


	21. Announcement!

_Merry Christmas 2011!_

_To all the readers of _Caught in the middle of the Paths_, I have a little christmas present._

Caught in the middle of the Path_s will get a re-write!_

_Correcting some mistakes I made earlier, deepening the character relationships_

_and maybe even managing to prolong the story, _Caught_ returns in new form._

_I hope it's old readers will enjoy the new version as well._

_Hope everybody has a merry christmas and a wonderful new year's eve._

_CatMuto_


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